A New Power: The Crossroads of Destiny
by Imperial Acclamator 119830
Summary: Part Three of the 'A New Power' Series. As Grindelwald unleashes his doomsday weapons, the destinies of all involved in the war to save the Magical World begin to unfold. Some will survive, others will perish, and some... will become heroes.
1. The Dark Day

Disclaimer: I don't own a frakin' thing.

**A NEW POWER**

_**THE CROSSROADS OF DESTINY**_

-.-

**Chapter 1**

**The Dark Day**

-.-

"Do you have the spell?"

"I'm working on it, Hope. I'll never get it down if you keep asking me if I'm done every five minutes."

"I'm sorry, Paige. I've just got a bad feeling about this."

"Damn it, Hope," Catherine said, handing Danielle a piece of chalk. "You've got a bad feeling about this? Come on, that's right up there with 'What could possibly go wrong!'"

"She does have Phoebe's powers," Elizabeth commented. "It makes sense that's she'd…" She broke off when she noticed the look on Paige's face.

"I… I'm sorry; I know how much Phoebe and Piper…"

"It doesn't matter now." Paige said, her eyes not leaving the half written spell in front of her. "They're gone, and we will be too if we don't hurry. Anyway, I'm fairly certain this is the right spell. We should end up right where we want to. Of course, there is a possibility that we could arrive somewhere in South Africa, in Berlin, Germany in 1944, The Lost City of Atlantis, or the middle of deep space." Noticing the odd looks on the other's faces, Paige said, "What? Time-travel is tricky."

"Yeah, well we're only getting one shot at this." Danielle said, laying down the chalk and glancing at the Triquetra she had drawn on the wall for them to use as a portal to the past. "It had better work."

"Don't worry," Elizabeth said. "We'll be fine… unless Grindelwald decides to attack us, that is." Six columns of fire erupted near the attic doorway and a hail of fireballs shot towards them from the newly-arrived demons.

"You had to say something, didn't you?" Catherine asked, glaring at her older sister. Danielle hurled several fireballs of her own back at the demons. She vanquished three of them, but four more appeared in their place.

"Uh, guys… We need to go, _right now_!" Danielle exclaimed, ducking behind the table she was using as a shield. Paige, who was also hiding behind the table with Danielle, tossed a slip of paper toward Catherine.

"Go!" she shouted. "We'll hold them off!" Catherine shook her head.

"No, you won't stand a chance!"

"You have to go!" Danielle exclaimed. "You're the only hope for the future. Get out of here. Get back and stop all this before it begins!" Catherine unfolded the paper and gathered Hope and Elizabeth around her. Together, they read the spell.

"_Hear these words, hear the rhyme. Heed the hope within my mind. Send me back to where I'll find, what I wish in place and time._" The Triquetra Danielle had drawn began to glow. A bluish portal appeared on the wall and Elizabeth and Hope hurried through it. Catherine made to walk through it as well, but turned to look at Paige and Danielle. Paige was hurling potions at the advancing demons, while Danielle unleashed a hellish barrage of fire and energy balls.

One of the demons threw a fireball in her direction and Catherine took a step backwards, turned, and darted into the portal. It remained for a short moment, and then vanished. An arrow struck Paige's left shoulder, knocking her to the floor. Danielle took two more demons down and hurried to Paige's side, quickly removing the arrow.

"Paige, we've got to get out of here. I know a place we can go, but…" Danielle had held fire a moment too long. One of the demons plunged a foot long blade into her lower back. She collapsed on top of Paige, who gently stroked Danielle's long, dark hair with her right hand and gazed blearily at the demon above her. Paige closed her eyes and gripped Danielle's hand, which was still warm. Paige sighed as she felt the poison finish its deadly work. She never heard the demon ignite a fireball in his hand.

**Magic School, Present Day.**

"I don't mean to be rude," said Ginny as she and the others followed Catherine, Elizabeth, and Hope into the Great Hall of Magic School. "But could one of you _please_ tell us what the hell is going on? Why did we have to leave the manor so quickly?"

"Alright," Catherine began, once everyone had found seats in the Great Hall. "I take you all already know about Grindelwald. He's been preparing all this time. During the war with Voldemort, the years leading up to the war with the Source, he's been getting everything ready. If, as you said, he vanquished the Source, it clearly means his plans are complete."

"Just what are his plans?" Hermione asked.

"Well, Voldemort and Grindelwald are two very different people. Voldemort used force in his bid to conquer. Grindelwald isn't going to give us a chance to fight. He has constructed hundreds of…. towers, I suppose you would call them. What they do is collect Dark Magic and then release it with devastating results. Anything within a five miles radius of the device will be utterly destroyed. Any living being within a fifty mile radius will lose their free will. They'll be corrupted with Dark Magic. They will become mindless servants of Grindelwald."

"And where are these devices now?" Ginny asked.

"Underground. They rise up and tower over everything else. Terrible, jet black monstrosities, they are. A device has been placed in every major city throughout the world." Catherine checked her watch. "If I'm right, New York City no longer exists. The same will be true for London in about five minutes, Chicago in ten minutes, Washington D.C. in about twenty, Paris in thirty, Berlin in forty-five, and Moscow in an hour. By nightfall, most of the entire world will fall under Grindelwald's control. The parts that don't…. will be nothing but wastelands."

"If what you say is true... _millions_ will die," said Ron. "What... what can we do?"

"There's nothing we can do," said Catherine firmly. "Not for the rest of the world, anyway. Once activated, those towers are practically invincible. There is, however, a chance to save San Francisco. The device over San Francisco will fail to activate properly and Grindelwald will be forced to repair it.

"In our future, the Order launched an attack against it, but without knowing much about the devices, it failed. Fortunately, _we've_ learned quite a bit about them. We should be able to destroy it this time and save the city."

"Then we should get moving," said Harry quickly. "We'll go to…"

"We can't do anything until the devices are activated," Catherine interrupted.

"Isn't that… counterproductive?" asked Ginny.

"Anyone outside of Hogwarts or Magic School will be either killed or fall under Grindelwald's control when those towers come online. Hogwarts and Magic School are protected, but everywhere else… Once the towers are activated and the Dark Magic released, we'll be fine. There is, however, one more thing. Once activated, the devices gather any remaining Dark Magic and send it to Grindelwald. If we don't reach him before he collects all the Dark Magic… he'll be unstoppable."

"Okay, then." Hermione said. "What do you suggest we do?"

"Go to Hogwarts. Try to get everyone possible into the safe places, Muggles and Magic folk alike. It's about survival as a race now, not whether a person is magical or not. Also, call a meeting of the Order of the Phoenix and purpose attacking the device in San Francisco. If we succeed in destroying it, we'll need to begin preparing to defend the city from the inevitable counter-attack."

"On that note," Hermione said suddenly. "I've got something that could help immensely. I still need to run a few tests, but…"

"Alright, then." Harry said. "Hermione, you do whatever it is you need to do. The rest of us will go to Hogwarts and find Dumbledore."

"Actually, I'll need Catherine, Ginny and Hope to stay with me." Harry nodded.

"Wait," said Catherine abrupted. "Don't orb, Apparate instead. It's faster and the less time spend outside the better." A series of loud cracks filled the room as the group Disapparated.

"What do you need us for, Mum?" Catherine asked as Hermione led them to an empty classroom.

"Well, you remember when we attempted to have you shield Hogwarts with your power?" Hermione asked, placing the Book of Shadows on a desk and opening it.

"Vividly." muttered Catherine.

"Yes, well since then I've been looking for a way to enhance one's strength enough to keep the shield up for an increased length of time. Unfortunately, I've failed to find one. However, I have discovered another option. I've made a potion, that when combined with a rather dodgy spell, creates a shield with enough power to repel the impact of… well, an object the size of a small moon."

"How does this potion work, exactly?" Hope asked.

"That's the easy part," Hermione said. "As long as the fire remains lit under the cauldron in which the potion is mixed, the shield works. Let it go out, no shield. Now, I was thinking that if we set the cauldron on the roof of one of the tallest buildings downtown, we should be able to protect the entire city."

"And you're certain this will work?" Catherine asked. Hermione hesitated.

"Well, I haven't had a chance to test it yet, but I'm _sure_ I've done everything right."

"You still haven't explained exactly what you needed us for." Ginny said. Hermione scooped up a small blade and extended it out toward the Ginny and Hope.

"I need your blood." she said simply.

"Why?" Hope asked, eyeing the weapon apprehensively.

"Well, you and Ginny both have the shield power," Hermione explained. "I need your blood to finish the potion."

"Great…" Hope muttered, reaching out and grasping the blade firmly. She pierced the tip of her forefinger and allowed several drops of blood to fall into the cauldron Hermione had placed on the desk. She then passed the blade to Ginny and squeezed her finger to stop the flow of blood. Hermione smiled and moved to her daughter's side. She took her hand and a moment later, the wound was gone.

"Thanks," Hope said, examining her cut-free finger.

"You're welcome," Hermione said, watching Ginny add her blood to the bubbling potion.

"Okay, then," Ginny said. "Is that all you needed or would you like us to add our spleens too?" Hermione laughed.

"No, that was it. You can head on to Hogwarts if you'd like. I need to stay here and finish this potion. If I don't get it right, I'll have to start over."

"So, you'd need our blood again?" Hope asked.

"Yes." Hermione said.

"Okay, let's go." exclaimed Hope, Disapparating with a loud crack. Ginny smiled and vanished as well. Catherine moved to her mother's side and gazed down into the cauldron.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" she asked.

"God help us if it doesn't, Kat. Because from the way things are going, there isn't anyone else in the universe that will be able to."


	2. The Gathering Storm

-.-

**Chapter 2**

**The Gathering Storm**

-.-

"Is it supposed to be that sickly green color?"

"For now, yes. When it's done it should be a pale blue." Catherine moved away from the sizzling cauldron and sat down on the teacher's desk. Several minutes passed before either of them spoke.

"Mum, can I ask you something?"

"Sure." said Hermione, sprinkling a strange, yellow powder into the cauldron.  
"Why is this happening? Why is everything falling apart? It… it doesn't seem fair…" Hermione sat down on the next to Catherine and wrapped her arm around her shoulders.

"I don't know." Hermione said sadly. "And no, you're right it isn't fair at all. We just have to do everything we can to make it right."

"What if 'everything we can do' isn't enough?" Hermione shrugged.

"Then it's not," she said plainly. "We can't worry about that. All we can do is fight as hard as we can, for as long as we can. The rest is… not up to us."

"Then who is it up to?"

"The powers that be? Hell, I don't know, Kat. Just remember… whatever happens, we did all we could." Again, silence fell between them. Hermione continued adding ingredients, measuring colorful powders and foul smelling liquids on scales, and consulting the Book of Shadows. After about half an hour, Catherine spoke up again.

"Mum… are you scared?" she asked quietly.

"Do you want an honest answer or do you want me to make you feel better?" Hermione inquired, not looking up.

"An honest answer,"

"No, I'm not scared, Kat… I'm terrified." Catherine smiled.

"Well, you don't show it."

"I can't. I have four beautiful daughters that need someone to be strong for them."

"We don't always need you to be strong, Mum." Hermione looked up at Catherine.

"I wasn't talking about you, Kat." she said. "I meant Elizabeth, Hope, Danielle and… Leslie."

"Leslie…. Who is Leslie? Oh, God… you're pregnant again, aren't you?"

"Yes," Hermione said as she emptied a vial of purple liquid into the cauldron. "You… you're strong, Kat You always have been. Honestly, I need you far more than you need me."

"That's not entirely true. You're… an inspiration for me."

"I'm not so sure about that. Have you noticed how Danielle and Elizabeth, both of whom are older than you, seem to look up to you as a leader? That's not something you can learn. The ability to lead is something you either have, or you don't." Catherine said nothing, but allowed Hermione to continue working in silence.

"There, done!" Hermione announced twenty minutes later, extinguishing the flame and gesturing toward the cauldron. Catherine peered over the rim and sniffed. It didn't smell too bad, but she was still thankful this was one potion she didn't have to drink.

"Well, let's get this mess to Hogwarts then." Catherine said.

"Alright, but I'll have to orb. Apparation is difficult as it is without toting luggage along too." Catherine sighed.

"Fine, just be careful."

"Yeah, you too." Hermione said as Catherine vanished with a loud crack. Hermione gathered the potion ingredients, gripped the rim of the cauldron, and dissolved into blue-white mist.

-.-

Hermione appeared in the Gryffindor Common Room. Despite having orbed, which was slower than Apparation, she still arrived before Catherine as she would have to walk up to the school due to the castle's Anti-Apparation spells. Elizabeth and Piper sat by the fire, talking. Piper seemed to be in a much better mood. It was apparent that Elizabeth had told Piper that Paige would become a Whitelighter.

Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna, and Hope sat with Dumbledore and a group of other Order members discussing the next move. Phoebe and Danielle poured over maps of the city of San Francisco on one of the many tables filling to room. Hermione deposited the things she had brought along from Magic School on a chair and moved toward Dumbledore and the others.

"It won't be that easy, Professor. The Golden Gate Bridge is a very weak point in our defensive position. If Grindelwald manages to secure it, he'll have a direct route into the city. I think we might have to accept that we may need to destroy it." Dumbledore nodded.

"I agree. The Order has already eliminated all other bridges leading into the city. With the anti-magical transportation spells placed over the city, we should be safe. If, however, it seems we will lose the bridge, we will destroy it." Dumbledore looked up at Hermione.

"Could you mix up some of that potion you used several years ago to destroy Voldemort's prison facility? I think it's the best bet to destroy the bridge." Hermione nodded.

"Of course," Hermione said. She gestured over her shoulder at the cauldron. "The shield potion is finished. I just have to add one final ingredient when we're ready to use it, but otherwise…"

"Excellent." Dumbledore said.

"What about that spell to use with it?" Ginny asked.

"Well, I've been thinking about that." Hermione said, taking a seat between Harry and Hope. "The reason for the spell was that there wasn't a way to properly replicate the shield power. With your blood now in the potion, we shouldn't need it."

"Couldn't you have just used the damn spell and allow me to keep all my blood in my body?" Hope complained.

"Well, yes, but the spell was a gamble at best. This way, we've got a better chance of success."

"Hey! I've got great news!" Catherine said hurrying through the portrait hole. "I met Tonks on the way up here and she said she and a few others went to New York. The device there had already been brought to the surface, but… but the city survived! The device there failed to activate. New York is still standing." Cheers exploded throughout the room as members of the Order halted in their duties to celebrate.

"Professor," Harry said. "We'll need to send a team there as soon as we can. Grindelwald'll be going there as well as San Francisco."

"Indeed, I'll take care of New York if you take care of San Francisco."

"What about London?" Luna asked.

"It's gone," Catherine said sadly. "Reports are coming in… it's the same thing everywhere. A massive, dark tower standing over a wasteland. Not a building or sign of life anywhere. The sky is black and a huge, spiraling cloud like a hurricane spins above the tower. The tower is connected to the cloud by a beam of reddish light. The ground is alight with fire. Flames so hot… It's unimaginable."

-.-

"Hey, Bill! Come take a look at this!" Mark leaned away from one of the International Space Station's small windows to allow Bill to look down at the planet below.

"Dear God…" Bill said, his eyes widening as he took in the scene before him. The planet which had once been a blue and green paradise was now a blackened desert. Fires blazed across the planet's surface, burning everything they touched. Billowing, black clouds filled the sky, spinning like hurricanes over a devastated world.

"What the hell is happening down there?" asked Mark.

"I don't know, but I get the feeling we're going to be up here for a long time."

-.-

**Bank of America Building. Downtown San Francisco. Three Days Later**

"I can't believe we're actually basing our operations here." Phoebe said as she and Catherine walked out onto a wide balcony and peered over the railing.

"Can you think of anywhere else to do it?" Catherine asked inquisitively.

"Well… no," Phoebe reluctantly admitted. "I would've just picked somewhere… that's not so… you know, high."

"You're not afraid of heights, are you, Phoebe?"

"Of course not!" Phoebe exclaimed. "I just… don't… Damn it. _Fine_, I'm actually terrified of heights. Are you happy?"

"Actually, yes," Catherine leaned against the railing of the tower, staring blankly around at the city below her. The citizens of the city had been ordered to stay in their homes. Dumbledore had spoken to the mayor of the city and explained what was happening. He had then helped the mayor address the city about what was to happen.

Even so, some people chose to leave their homes and venture into the city. Ministry wizards had to keep rounding up the curious and the nosy. Dumbledore then departed to New York, where Grindelwald had already launched his assault. The shield potion had performed wonderfully and Grindelwald's forces there had been repelled.

"Phoebe? Catherine?" Harry said, stepping out onto the balcony. "Where's Hermione?"

"Up on the roof," said Phoebe. "She's about to test her potion and she said she needed silence."

"Well, you two _do_talk a lot… Err… never mind. Look, Ron and I were out scouting near the Golden Gate Bridge and we spotted an army approaching. Their numbers…. Well, he couldn't get an accurate count, but there's at least two thousand, maybe more. They'll be here within the hour. We've got the bridge rigged to blow and we should be able to thin their numbers when we destroy it."

"They won't all cross it all at once." Catherine said. "They'll be expecting us to destroy the bridge. Grindelwald will send a strike force across the bridge. We'll destroy it and then the rest of his forces will storm the city from another way."

"You're both wrong." Hermione said, pushing open the door to the balcony. She pointed out toward the horizon where a massive fireball was streaking toward the city. "They're going to bombard the city at long range." The fireball struck the side of the Transamerica Pyramid, leaving a red-rimmed hole through nearly twenty floors. The weakened structure creaked and shifted and finally collapsed down upon itself. A moment later, a silver-blue bubble encased San Francisco. The hail of devastation unleashed by Grindelwald's army dissipated as it struck the protective shield.

"Harry," Hermione whispered as she watched the shield flash and flicker under the bombardment. "We're not going to be able to hold them for long."

Whether it would be days, or weeks until the end of the battle, none of them knew. But they did know one thing. The Battle of San Francisco had begun.


	3. The Seige of San Francisco

-.-

**Chapter 3**

**The Siege of San Francisco**

-.-

Six days. Six long, hard, tiring days. San Francisco had been under siege for six complete days and was about to enter the seventh. In those six days, the shield had collapsed a total of seventy-six times. Each time the shield failed, groups of Death Eaters slipped into the city. The Order had tracked down and vanquished a number of them, but many more still remained. Muggle families were killed every day, but by the time the Order arrived on the scene, the Death Eaters were no where to be found.

It was midnight and Hermione was to be found atop the Bank of America building, struggling to stay awake. Someone had to remain with the shield potion at all times to ensure the fire which burned beneath it remained alight. The loss of the flame had been the cause of every collapse of the shield thus far.

"Mione?" Harry said, stepping out onto the balcony. Hermione jerked awake and looked up at him.

"Did I fall asleep?" Hermione asked sleepily.

"Yeah, you did." He said, sitting down next to her and wrapping the blanket he'd brought with him around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry," she said, resting her head against his shoulder.

"You're tired… we all are. It's not really all that surprising, to be honest. Not after all we've been through." Hermione stood and walked to the edge of the roof, peering down at the dark street far below. Harry climbed to his feet and followed her.

"What a view…" Harry said. Despite having been up on the roof many times, he had never stopped to look at the city surrounding him. Hermione's eyes drifted upward to gaze at the moon, barely visible through the bluish haze of the energy shield. Gently, Harry pulled her closer to him and captured her lips in a passion kiss that was unfortunately cut far to short by Phoebe. Harry and Hermione sank back down on the floor as Phoebe said,

"Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to… erm… interrupt.. I'll just…" Hermione shook her head and patted the spot beside her.

"What are you doing up this late anyway, Phoebe?" Harry asked.

"I couldn't sleep." Phoebe said, plopping down on the floor on Hermione's left side and snuggling up against her. "I can't stop thinking about Paige."

"Neither can I…" A small voice said. The three looked up to spot Piper walking toward them. It was clear from her attire that she, like Phoebe, had been attempting to go to sleep. Piper sat down beside Harry and gripped his hand tightly.

"She'll be back," Hermione said, tilting her head so she could see Piper. "Don't worry."

"How can we not worry in times like these?" Catherine asked, stepping through the sliding glass door Piper had left open. Catherine sat down in front of Hermione and leaned back against her, her head resting on Hermione's chest. Hermione began playing with a strand of Catherine's hair, twirling it around her finger, letting go, and repeating the process.

"Do you think you could ask the Elders when she can come back… or if we could just see her?" Piper asked Hermione, a hint of hope in her voice.

"I already did, Piper. The last time I was up there, they wouldn't tell me anything."

"It didn't take you this long to come back…" Phoebe said, her eyes locking with Hermione's.

"I don't know what's taking so long, Pheebs. Maybe we just have to…" A blinding white light appeared and a shimmering figure stepped out of it. Phoebe leapt to her feet and darted forward.

"Paige!" she screamed, grasping her baby sister around the neck and clung on as though her life depended on it. They held each other for a moment, and then Phoebe broke down completely, sobbing uncontrollably into her sister's shoulder.

"Oh, Paige, I'm so sorry…"

"Phoebe." said Paige.

"… it was my job to protect you…"

"Phoebe."

"…. as an older sister, it was my responsibility and I failed…"

"_Phoebe_."

"… please, please forgive me for failing you, Paige. I…"

"_Phoebe!_" Paige shouted.

"What…?" Paige smiled.

"It's okay. There was nothing you could have done…" Paige's eyes fell on Piper, who averted her gaze.

"There was nothing _either_of you could have done."

"She's right, there wasn't." Danielle said, appearing in a column of fire and positioning herself on Catherine's right side so that she could also lie in her mother's protective arms. "Both of you were unconscious."

"Not to mention neither of you have powers. You couldn't have possibly stopped Zankou." Ginny put in, pulling open the door and taking Phoebe's vacated seat. Slowly, Piper stood and made her way over to her two younger sisters. Phoebe stepped away from Paige, still wiping tears from her eyes.

"Paige," Piper began, clearly not sure what to say. "I… I'm sorry I haven't said this before, and… well, I just wanted to say…"

"You don't have to say it, Piper. I already know." Paige said, pulling her oldest sister into a tight hug. "I love you, too." It was now Piper's turn to cry. She sobbed hysterically into Paige's neck for what seemed like hours before she finally pulled away.

"I… I do love you, Paige." She said, her voice shaking. "I should have told you long before now, but I just thought… I thought if I admitted how much I loved you… I'd lose you too." Paige couldn't seem to find the right words to express her feelings, so she said nothing. Instead, she pulled Piper into another hug and allowed herself to be led back over to where the others sat. The three sisters huddled up against each other, tears still streaming down their faces.

It was five in the morning before everyone decided to go to bed. Paige, Piper and Phoebe elected to remain with the potion to allow the others to rest. Hermione pushed open the door to one of the bedrooms which had been magically created. Harry scooped her into his arms from behind and carried her into the room. He gently placed her on the bed, his lips leaving a trail of kisses down her neck.

"Harry, I'm tired…" Hermione moaned, but she offered no resistance to Harry's actions.

"Want to go to sleep?" Harry inquired, slowly untying her bathrobe. Hermione shook her head, a look of mischief in her eyes.

-.-

When Hermione awoke the following morning, she had a plan fully formed in her mind. It was as though she had been preparing it while she'd been sleeping.

"Harry, wake up!" Hermione exclaimed, shaking Harry roughly.

"Mione…" Harry said sleepily. "Didn't you get enough last night? I mean, I love sex as much as the next guy, but _damn__…_" Hermione hit him with her pillow.

"I'm not talking about that!" She shouted. "I know how we're going to defeat Grindelwald!"

-.-

"Are you sure that'll work?"

"Well… no. I'm not even sure if it'll be far enough, but it's as far as we can go without changing more than we'd like."

"Mione, you're talking about going back to when you still hated me. I mean, we could accidentally erase one of the girls from time."

"Harry, I know that. But… we have the opportunity to save billions of lives. To stop all this before it happens."

"Hermione's right, Harry." said Ron. "We'd be changing the future for the better."

"There are, of course, still risks." Hermione said. "Like Harry said, we could erase one of the girls from time; I could be late showing up where you three were hiding and not be there to heal Paige. There are so many variables it's not even possible to prepare for each of them. I don't like the stakes any more than you do, Harry. The point is…"

"We have to do it." Everyone looked up to see Catherine, Hope, Elizabeth and Danielle watching them. "Despite the risks…. It's our duty." Catherine continued. Harry sighed. He looked at each of them in turn. Hermione, who had her arms folded across her chest, watched Harry closely. Catherine stood with her sisters, each of them awaiting Harry's response. Luna flipped through the Book of Shadows while Ron looked on from over her shoulder. Piper, Phoebe and Paige leaned against the wall, watching in silence. Phoebe kept playing with Paige's hair and Piper rested her head on Phoebe's shoulder.

"Fine," Harry finally said. "Fine, but we can't all go."

"Why not?" Phoebe demanded.

"Because if something goes wrong, someone's got to be here to go back and fix it." Harry exchanged a look with Hermione. "Mione and I will go first. We'll do what we can and try to keep things on track with the current future as best we can." Harry glanced toward Grindelwald's dark tower, which they still hadn't managed to destroy. "While we're gone, you all find a way to take that tower out. Just in case we… you know… don't make it back."

"You _have_to make it back." Phoebe said quietly. Harry chose not to respond to this and spoke to Hermione instead.

"Get the spell."

-.-

"The time has come. You must bring Hermione Granger to me. Bring her to me unharmed. If she is injured in the slightest way, you will suffer far more that even the torment you inflicted upon _her_."

"Can't you send someone else, my Lord?" said Daniel grimly, looking up at the towering figure of Grindelwald standing over him.

"Hermione is _your_ daughter," said Grindelwald. I need to speak with her, with any luck I can bring her around. _You_will bring her to me."


	4. Once More, With Feeling

-.-

**Chapter 4**

**Once More, With Feeling**

-.-

**May, 3rd 2004. **

Harry trudged toward Dumbledore's office. The headmaster had asked him to come up to the school to discuss something Dumbledore had called 'gravely important.' Harry gave the password and stepped onto the spiral staircase. As he rode the slowly revolving staircase, a terrible pain shot through Harry's head, nearly causing him to collapse. As the pain subsided, Harry realized it had worked. He had successfully returned to the past. Smiling, Harry pushed open the door to Dumbledore's office.

"You wanted to see me, Professor?" Harry said, pretending he had no idea what Dumbledore wanted. He supposed it would be best to maintain as much of the timeline as possible, even the little things.

"Ah, Harry! Yes, come in, come in. Take a seat. Would you like a lemon drop?" Dumbledore asked.

"No thanks, Professor." Harry responded, taking a seat in front of the Headmaster's desk.

"Ah, well." said Dumbledore taking a seat behind his desk and gazing at Harry. He sighed, and continued. "What I am about to tell you is very important, Harry." He looked around the office as though to make certain no one was listening in. "Our lead scientist is currently working on a new potion which, when drunk, will protect the drinker from the Unforgivable Curses." Harry hesitated, not entirely certain what to say. He elected to seem happy and surprised.

"That's great, sir!"

"Please, Harry, let me finish. Unfortunately, Lord Voldemort has discovered this and he wishes to capture our scientist and force her to create the potion for him and his Death Eaters. As such, I am requesting that you protect her from harm. Were she to be captured or killed, the consequences would be more terrible that you can possibly imagine."

"Alright," said Harry. "I'll do it. Who is she?"

"Oh, I think you'll remember her. She was a good friend in school. Ms. Hermione Granger?" Remembering that he had had no desire to meet Hermione the first time around, Harry decided to keep that part of the past intact as well.

"What!" Harry exclaimed, leaping from his seat. "You expect me to... Are you... NO!"

"Harry, you must!" Dumbledore exclaimed.

"I can't!" Harry replied grimly. "She hates me."

"Ah, yes. The Anti-Muggleborn Decree," said Dumbledore gravely. "Yes, I remember how angry she was."

"I knew she would be," said Harry sadly. She thinks I betrayed her!"

"In a sense, you did," said Dumbledore. "Why don't you just tell her the truth?"

"What? Tell a girl who has despised me for five years that I love her? And that's why I practically kicked her out of the magical world... only to find out that she's in just as much danger as she was then?"

"Precisely!" Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling. "Now, will you do this? Will you guard Ms. Granger?"

"No, I won't, and there's no way you're making me do this!"

-.-

"I'm glad he made me do this." Harry said as he strode to the door of an old manor house. The dwelling was situated far from any other population centers. While Harry had only spent a few days there, he still couldn't imagine Hermione wanting to live in a place like this. He knocked on the door. He heard the sound of shuffling feet, a click, and the door opened.

"Well?" she asked when Harry stood in the doorway, not speaking. "Are you going to come in or not. I'm very busy."

"I… uh…" It was obvious that Hermione was yet to perform the spell. They'd done it so Harry would get there first and arrive at Hermione's house just as she was returning to the past. Something must have gone wrong.

"So…"

"Look," Hermione interrupted him. "You don't like me, and I sure as hell don't like you, and despite what Dumbledore thinks, I'm quite capable of defending myself. Unfortunately, I can't convince him of that. So, to satisfy the Order…" Hermione broke off, looking lightheaded. She swayed slightly on the spot, and then collapsed. Harry caught her before she hit the floor and carried her into the living room. As he was placing her on the couch, she began to wake.

"What happened?" she asked weakly.

"You passed out, that's what happened." Harry explained. "What took you so long? I mean, this is you, right? Not past you, but… the you from the future, or…"

"If I was me from the past… or the present… depending on which way you look at it… I hate time travel. Anyway, if you started talking like that to me from this point in time, I'd have thought you were crazy."

"So what took you so long?" asked Harry. "You were supposed to be here when I arrived."

"Harry… just as we were about to cast the spell, the shield went down. I don't know how it happened. Grindelwald's army flooded into the city, burning everything in sight. They reached the Bank of America building just as I cast the spell. They won't be able to stop them all."

"Don't worry about that." Harry said. "We're going to change all this."

"We are," said Hermione firmly. "I've been thinking about how we're going to have to go about this, and I'm thinking that we might be able to stop Voldemort earlier than we did before. We have future knowledge of everything that's going to happen. We know where, when and how Voldemort will strike. We've just got to make sure we prevent his attacks."

"How?" Harry asked. "I mean, don't you _have_to be captured by Voldemort when he attacks the school in a couple of months in order to keep the future on track? And what about the Halliwells and the Book of Shadows? Not to mention Malfoy and everything he caused." Hermione slumped back against the couch, clearly deep in thought.

"Did you like living out here?" Harry asked suddenly.

"What?" asked Hermione, surprised by the sudden change of subject.

"I mean, instead of in the city?"

"Sort of…" she said after a moment. "I love the manor, but… I like things quieter than life at the manor…" She trailed off, slipping back into the realm of deep thought she had been in before Harry had spoken.

Harry's eyes trailed down Hermione's body, noticing the differences that seven years could make. Her hazel eyes had a sparkle in them that had long since faded from the Hermione he knew. The cuts, bruises and scars from nearly seven years of war were nowhere to be found. She had an aura of innocence about her that Harry hadn't seen in a long time.

"What do you think is happening in the future?" Harry asked after ten minutes of silence. Hermione shook her head.

"I don't know." she said sadly.

"Well," said Harry, standing and offering his hand to Hermione. She accepted, and Harry helped her to her feet. "I assume you have a plan."

"Yes," Hermione responded after a moment. "Sleep," Hermione paused and waved her hand at a lamp on the coffee table. Nothing happened. "We'll have to go and meet Dumbledore once we get our powers. For now, though, I could use some rest."

-.-

**April 20th, 2011**

"Sir, San Francisco… it's gone."

"New York is the same. It would seem Hogwarts and Magic School are the only safe places left in the world."

"Professor… what happened in California… I…"

"It isn't your fault, Catherine," Dumbledore interrupted her. "You did your best. It's up to your mother and father now. They'll either succeed, or they'll fail. It's out of our hands now."

"But… but Phoebe and Piper… they… and Ginny and Danielle, they… they're…"

"I know. Trust me when I say their loss has been difficult for us all. If your parents succeed, they will be saved. If not, it won't matter. If they fail, I daresay they will be far better off where they are than they would be here."

"Do you think they can do it? I mean, if they were going to succeed, wouldn't the future have already changed?" Dumbledore shook his head.

"The future is always changing, Catherine. Nothing is set in stone until it actually takes place. Until Grindelwald is destroyed, the future will not change." Catherine nodded and stood to her feet. She made to leave the headmaster's office, paused at the door, and moved back to Dumbledore's desk.

"Sir," she said. "What will happen to us if they get him?" A long moment of silence followed this question.

"Honestly, I do not know," Dumbledore admitted. "This war has seen more meddling with time than the magical world has ever known. It is possible that we would simply cease to exist. None of us would currently be doing what we are doing were it not for the war. I would guess that time would alter itself to suit any changes that are made." Catherine nodded, apparently satisfied, and left the office.

Ron, Luna, Paige, Elizabeth, and Hope, the only survivors from San Francisco, awaited her in the corridor. None of them spoke until they had all taken seats in the Great Hall.

"What did he have to say?" Paige asked. Catherine sighed.

"He's not really certain what's going to happen any more than we are. He did say that Mum and Dad are the only people he knows of who could pull this off."

"Yeah," Ron said. "But they're in the past. They couldn't stop Grindelwald when they had us at their side, not to mention their powers had advanced ten-fold. What chance do they have now?"

-.-

"Do you remember this night?"

"Yeah… it was quiet," said Hermione, leaning back in one of the lawn chairs perched out on the second floor balcony. "It was so… unexplainably quiet."

"But then, you like quiet." Harry reminded her from the chair to her left as he leaned forward to freshen his glass of lemonade.

"I do," Hermione admitted. "It's strange though, it's never this quiet here."

"Do you… do you think he knows?" she asked after a few silent minutes.

"Who?" Harry asked her.

"Grindelwald," said Hermione.

"What's he supposed to know, exactly?"

"That we've come back. That we're not the us from this time."

"I don't know," Harry said plainly. "But God… if he does we don't stand a chance."

Hermione leaned back against the pillows on her bed, her eyes slipping closed. Harry watched her thoughtfully for a moment, then stood to his feet. He moved to Hermione's desk and took out a roll of parchment, ink, and quill. He hurriedly loaded up his quill and began to write.

_Dear Catherine, _

_I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if you simply threw this letter away when you get it, Kat. If you do, that's okay, I would understand. I just have something important to tell you, something you're not going to believe. I have to tell you face to face. It's too important to explain here, but you can meet me at Hogsmeade tomorrow and we can talk. _

_There is something I want to say here, but I'm not certain how to say it. I am sorry with how we left things. I… never loved Ginny, not really. I thought I did, but… I didn't. I always loved you… to be honest, I still do. Even to this day, I love you. Even after I found out… but now I'm getting ahead of myself. _

_I'm with Hermione Granger right now. I'm certain you remember her. Well, she's working on a potion that's very difficult to make. I think you might be able to help her… us. _

_With love,_

_Harry_

"Hedwig!" Harry called, finishing up the letter. His shout woke Hermione who had fallen asleep while he'd been writing. She stood to her feet and moved to his side. As Hedwig flew through the open window, Hermione began reading the letter over Harry's shoulder.

"You still love her?" Hermione asked curiously as Harry folded up the letter. Harry tied the letter to Hedwig's leg. The owl had flown out of the window and vanished from sight before Harry answered.

"Yeah," he said. "I do. It's weird. I mean, it's not the same way I feel about you… you… words can't describe how I feel about you, Mione. It's just… we were together for a long time. What we had, what we were… we had a strong connection. I'm not attracted to her or anything like that, that's not what I'm saying. It… it's hard to explain." Hermione seemed to ponder these words for a moment, then said;

"What were your thoughts when you found out who she was? I mean, how did you feel, knowing everything that had happened between the two of you?"

"I honestly don't know. I guess I felt like… falling off the face of the Earth…." Harry paused, looking at his hands. He looked up at her, tears in his eyes. "There's something I never told you, Hermione."

"And what's that?" Hermione asked, gripping Harry's hand.

"Catherine was pregnant." Hermione's jaw dropped.

"What…?"

"She told me just before the first battle at Hogwarts," said Harry. "I didn't even…" he trailed off.

"My god…" Hermione whispered. "Why didn't you tell me?" Harry scoffed.

"Tell you that I'd gotten our daughter pregnant?" Harry held his face in his hands. "I have hated myself every moment of every day for the time she and I spent together. The things we did…"

"That was a different time," said Hermione in a very firm voice. "Neither of you knew. If it's anyone's fault, it's Dumbledore's. He knew, but he kept the truth from you."

"It's not that simple, Hermione. I slept with my own daughter. We were going to have a baby… a family. Catherine being back… seeing her again and remembering the past… it's been hard." It was at this point that Harry broke down completely. He sobbed into Hermione's chest. A

fter awhile, Hermione moved them onto the bed. Harry could never remember exactly how long they laid there, but the next thing Harry knew, he was lying in bed with Hermione, using her chest as a pillow. Her right hand gently stroked his head, while the other gripped his hand tightly. Harry looked up curiously at her.

"What time is it?" He asked, shaking his head.

"About noon…" Hermione said with a yawn.

"Noon!" Harry exclaimed. "But it was only six in the evening when I wrote that letter."

"Yes," Hermione said with another yawn. "I suppose it was."

"Did you go to sleep?" Harry inquired.

"For a few hours." Hermione muttered, exhaustion filling her voice. "We missed that meeting with Dumbledore. We were supposed to learn that the Charmed Ones were dead and learn that we'd gotten their powers."

"Fucking up already?" Harry sighed. "Not a good omen for the future."

"Little things… won't change much. It's the big things I'm concerned with. I mean, we're never going to be able to be at the exact place at the exact time, or say the same things. It's too much to remember. We have to do the best we can to keep the major events on track. I suppose…." A brilliant, blinding flash of light illuminated the room. Two figures appeared, both of them eyeing Harry and Hermione curiously.

"Hope…?" Hermione asked, shocked. "Elizabeth? What the hell are you doing here?"

"We've come back to warn you." Hope said. "The future is messed up worse than you know. We're here to help you fix it."


	5. Future's End

-.-

**Chapter 5**

**Future's End**

-.-

"So just how screwed are we?" Harry asked as he, Hermione and the girls took seats in the kitchen

"Screwed," Hope responded, exchanging a glance with her sister.

"How, exactly?" Hermione inquired, looking between each of her daughters.

"In every way possible, Mum." Elizabeth said. "Piper, Phoebe, Danielle and Ginny didn't survive the assault on San Francisco, which is now a crater by the way. Magic School's a ruin. Grindelwald hit the school at the same time as the attack on the city. So far, though, he's left Hogwarts alone." Hermione shook her head and held her face in her hands.

"He knows…" She whispered, her soft voice trembling.

"Who knows what?" Harry asked, perplexed.

"Grindelwald," Hermione answered. "He knows what we've done, Harry. He knows we've gone back in time. He'll come for us."

"It makes sense." Elizabeth agreed. "If he destroys Hogwarts, there won't be anyone left to send back in time. Once he kills the two of you… he'll have won."

"Then we can't let that happen," said Harry. He stood and began pacing around the table. "Okay, let's assume Grindelwald destroys Hogwarts. If this is his plan, he'll come back here. We're a lot less powerful in this time, but so is he. Right now, we need to focus on vanquishing Voldemort. He's the biggest threat."

"Hold on," Hope interrupted. "I thought we needed to make sure events happen the same way they did the first time. Otherwise, we'd cause all sorts of unseen problems."

"Well, we can't make things worse than they already are." Hermione put in.

"Besides," said Harry. "If we follow the timeline perfectly, we'll only have two years to vanquish Grindelwald before the world goes to hell. Personally, I would like a bit more time to save our lives."

"We have future knowledge of everything that is going to happen." said Hermione. "We know where Voldemort will be, when he'll be there, and we already know how to use our powers. Vanquishing him shouldn't be too difficult."

"Wait," said Hope. "Grindelwald's the real threat, not Voldemort. Why not go back further and stop Voldemort from restoring his powers?"

"Except that we have no idea when Voldemort restores his powers," Hermione said. "We'd never be able to pick the right spot to travel to."

"No, I suppose we couldn't." Hope muttered. "So, what _do_ we do? Just wait?"

"Not much else we can do." said Harry.

"Fine," Elizabeth said. "What do we do now?"

"_You_don't do anything." Hermione told them. "Harry and I do. The best thing the two of you can do is hold Grindelwald back as best as you can. The more time we have here before he shows up, the better. Hope opened her mouth to object, but Elizabeth shook her head.

"She's right. We can't be of much help here. We should go."

"How do you purpose we leave?" asked Hope. Elizabeth shrugged.

"I'm not sure. Mum, do you think…" Hermione stood up from the table and left the room. Elizabeth stared blankly after her, then turned to Harry, giving him a curious look.

"Don't look at me." he said with a shrug. "She's _your_ mother." Hermione returned five minutes later with an hourglass attached to a thin, golden chain.

"Is that…" Hope began.

"A Time-Turner?" Elizabeth finished, staring at the tiny hourglass in disbelief.

"Yes," said Hermione. "It's quite possibly the only one left in existence."

"Where did you get it?" asked Elizabeth.

"That's… not important." Hermione responded.

"Wait," said Harry. "I thought Time-Turners could only transport people _backward_in time, not forward."

"Just because you've never used one to do anything but go back into the past doesn't mean it can't." Hermione answered.

"Hold on," said Hope, taking the Time-Turner from her mother, attaching it around her neck, and stretching the short chain around her sister. "The hourglass has to be flipped over once per hour traveled. Do you have any idea how many hours there are between now and our target time?" Hermione tapped the hourglass with her wand. It began spinning rapidly, quickly becoming a golden blur as its speed increased.

"Good luck." Hermione whispered. With a flash of light, they were gone. Harry stood and took Hermione's hand.

"C'mon," he said. "we've got work to do."

-.-

"I… apologize for returning, but I have important information about Grindelwald and the Order."

"I did not ask you to report to me, Malfoy." Zankou growled, glaring down at Draco with fury in his gaze.

"I understand that. It's just…. Harry and Hermione have traveled back in time. They plan to destroy Grindelwald before all this happens. Unfortunately, Grindelwald learned of this. He is marching on last stronghold of the Order, Hogwarts. Once it is gone, he too will return to the past. They won't stand a chance against him. He'll slaughter them." Zankou's eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

"You are certain of this?" he inquired.

"I have no doubt of it." Zankou nodded.

"Very well. You will travel to the past as well. You will be my… representative. You will go to Potter and make him and his wife believe you are from the future as well. Let them know you work for me, and that, on the issue of Grindelwald, we are on the same side. Help them defeat Grindelwald. Once this task is complete, you are to kill the Potters. Start with the Mudblood." Malfoy bowed.

"As you wish."

-.-

"Your failure to bring Hermione Granger to me is gravely disappointing," Grindelwald said airily as Daniel twitched and sputtered on the ground before him. "I've told you what she is... I _need_to know if _she_knows. Assuming she does not, my victory is assured. But if she is aware... if she knows of the power she could command... _I_ _must__know_." Grindelwald at last removed the Cruciatus Curse from Daniel. "If she does know, and if I could convince her, or even enchant her to join me, we would be unstoppable... but either way, I must meet with her. You, Daniel, will go ahead of me. Return to the past and capture her. Hold her until I finish with Dumbledore and the fools who think they can hold Hogwarts. I will then join you and interrogate her myself. You will not breathe a word, you understand... Not. A. Single. Word. Now... go." Daniel heaved himself up from the floor and stumbled from the room.

"Or," Grindelwald said to himself. "Perhaps she will kill you. Then I'll have one less idiot under my command." The door to the chamber creaked open and a demon slipped into the room.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, Milord, but I have news."

"Go ahead," Grindelwald muttered.

"Milord, Hogwarts has fallen."

-.-

"What time did you tell her to meet us?"

"Well, I didn't specify, but…"

"So you assumed?"

"Yes."

"You know what assuming does, correct?"

"No, what?"

"It causes you to make an ass out of yourself."

"I do that all the time, Mione. What's the difference this time?"

"I don't know, maybe because in a very short time the world's going to hell. I'd like to have every moment possible to save it!"

"I know that, Mione, but… I have to do this. I have to talk to her. Besides, she might be able to help us."

"Harry…"

"Look, five more minutes, okay?"

"Fine," Hermione leaned back in her seat, sipping her Butterbeer thoughtfully. Barely two minutes later the door to the Three Broomsticks clanged open and a familiar brunette stepped over the threshold. She made her way up to the bar, ordered a drink, then moved to Harry and Hermione's table. She sat down next to Hermione and glared across the table at Harry.

"So, just what did you drag me all the way out here for?" Catherine asked, irritation evident in her voice.

"I wanted to talk to you." Harry said. He glanced at Hermione, who once again sipped her Butterbeer and averted her gaze.

"About what?" Catherine demanded.

"About… well, the past."

"I don't dwell in the past, Harry. You shouldn't either. You know, I think you should…" Catherine winced as though in pain. She whimpered softly, shook her head and looked between Harry and Hermione.

"Mum?" she said. "Dad?" Hermione glanced curiously across the table at Harry. He shrugged.

"Thank God!" she exclaimed, pulling Hermione into a tight hug. "I can't believe I made it!"

"Wait," Harry said, looking completely nonplussed. "What happened?"

"Grindelwald destroyed Hogwarts," said Catherine in a brisk whisper. "Hope, Elizabeth and I managed to flee the school's destruction, but the Death Eater's followed us. We managed to get the Power of Three time travel spell off, but Liz and Hope… they didn't survive the attack."

"Then he'll be on his way." said Hermione gravely. "Grindelwald's coming... We're out of time."

-.-

Draco's eyes snapped open. He lay in his bed in the Malfoy manor. Draco climbed out of bed and quickly dressed. He didn't completely understand how Zankou had been able to send him back in time and didn't really care. Once fully dressed, he gathered his wand off the bedside table and Disapparated.

Draco reappeared just outside the gates to Hogwarts. He started to walk up to the school but before he had taken two steps, a blast hit him in the back and fell face first onto the ground. He rolled onto his back and glared at his attackers. Hermione stood over him, her hand outstretched, clearly ready to deal a killing blow if he flinched. Harry and Catherine stood beside her, glaring down at Malfoy as though he were something smelly on the bottom of their shoes.

"Was that necessary?" Malfoy inquired, attempting to stand, only to be flung back to the ground by Harry.

"Yes, it was." said Hermione in voice so cold Harry literally shivered. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I've come to help you. Zankou sent me here from the future… your future."

"Zankou?" Harry exclaimed. "You're working for him? He killed Paige, you sniveling bastard! You probably helped him do it!" Harry shifted his gaze to Hermione.

"Blow him up." he growled.

"Wait!" Draco begged. "Please, listen to me. I didn't help him kill Paige; I didn't even know he was going to. Look, Zankou sent me here to tell you that Grindelwald knows what you've done! He knows that you've come back here! He'll be coming too!"

"We already know that." Hermione said. She sighed. "If that's all you've got to say…" Her hand shifted slightly.

"Wait, that's not all!" Draco said, eyeing Hermione's hand. "He says that, where Grindelwald is concerned, we're on the same side. He believes that we need to work together to defeat him." Catherine scoffed.

"We're not working with evil."

"Agreed," said Harry. "Us, work with _him_? Are you crazy, Malfoy?"

"You want Grindelwald gone, right? Well, so do I. Together, we might just stand a chance against him." Harry shook his head.

"Wait a moment…" Hermione said, her tone hovering between suspicion and curiosity.

"Hermione, no fucking way!" Harry exclaimed. "I'm not working with him!"

"Mum, I can't _believe_ you are seriously thinking about this." said Catherine dryly.

"Neither can I," Hermione admitted. "But we're going to need all the help we can get."


	6. Visions of the Future

-.-

**Chapter 6**

**Visions of the Future**

-.-

"That is never going to work, Kat," said Harry as he and Catherine entered the attic of the Halliwell Manor two weeks later.

"You don't know that, Dad." Catherine replied, falling onto the old pink sofa.

"Yes, I do," said Harry. "I know your mother. She's made up her mind and nobody, I mean _nobody_, is going to change it. And honestly, I'm starting to agree with her."

"_What_?"

"I'm serious, Kat. Look at what we're facing, what we're up against. Hermione was right when she said we needed all the help we could get, even if that help is evil."

"But you don't trust Malfoy, do you?"

"No, but I do trust Hermione and her instincts. She wouldn't have suggested we trust him unless she had a feeling."

"She trusted him last time and it came back to bite us in the ass."

"I know that, Kat. That betrayal hurt your mother terribly. She doesn't talk about it, but then… there are many terrible things in your mother's past that she doesn't speak of. I never have asked her. I assume that when she is ready to speak of them, she will tell me."

"So…"

"So let it go, Kat. Let it go, and pray Hermione's right. God help us if she's not."

"Hey, I think I've found something!" Ron said from across the attic. He hefted the heavy Book of Shadows into his arms and carried it over to the sofa.

"I think this could be the spell the Charmed Ones used to fake their deaths." He said, gesturing at the short paragraph on the faded parchment.

"So…?" Harry said.

"_So_, it's possible that we could use it to fool Grindelwald into thinking we, or at least some of us, were dead. Then we would have the element of surprise."

"Are you sure that's the spell?" asked Catherine.

"Well, I think so. I wish Hermione could find the sisters so we could be sure. I mean, you three _are_ from the future. One would think you'd know where they are."

"We do… I mean, we _did_. That's where we started the search. Only now, they aren't there. All I can figure is they haven't gone there yet."

"Yeah," said Catherine grimly. "Unless they're…"

"Don't even say it, Kat." Harry interrupted. "They aren't dead. They can't be."

-.-

"He was so."

"He was not."

"Yes, he was."

"No, he wasn't."

"I'm telling you, Haley. He was definitely checking you out."

"Heather, maybe you haven't noticed this, but I look like someone completely different. So, perhaps I'm not really excited about the fact that he's interested in Haley instead of Paige."

"Do you always talk about yourself in the third person?" Holly asked, glancing across the café table around which the three women sat.

"Not normally, no." Haley admitted, rolling her eyes at Holly. "But in this situation I figured, why the hell not?"

"Could we not discuss this in public?" Heather said in a hushed whisper. "If anyone overhears us…."

"Someone already has." The girls looked up to see a dark haired woman approaching them. She pulled up a chair and sat down. "You know, you three look incredibly well for people who are supposed to be dead."

"Who are you?" Haley demanded.

"Hermione Granger." she said lightly "And I know all too well who you three are, so there's no need to pretend."

"And how do you know us?" Holly asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." said Hermione.

"Try us." Heather said.

"Fine," Hermione replied, a thin smile on her lips. "I'm from the future."

"You're from the future?" Holly repeated in a disbelievingly tone.

"Yes. Look, I know you have no reason to trust me, but if you'll just come back to the manor with me…"

"The manor?" Haley interrupted. "You're living there?"

"Yes. Listen, I'll explain everything there. Please, just trust me." The sisters exchanged glances. They silently agreed.

"Alright," Holly said. "We'll come with you."

"Excellent," Hermione said smiling. "Follow me." Hermione led them through the café and into the alley out back.

"Your hands, please." Hermione said.

"What are you…?" Heather began. Before she could finish her question, Hermione orbed them away.

-.-

"Got any fives?"

"Go fish."

"Damn… okay, your turn, Kat."

"How about… sevens?"

"How do you keep picking the right cards?" Harry muttered, tossing two cards onto the table.

"I don't know," Catherine said, smiling pleasantly. "Perhaps I'm simply better than you at card games, Dad."

"You're using those empathic powers of yours again, aren't you?"

"Of course not…" said Catherine innocently.

"What the hell are you two doing?" Ron asked, entering the attic carrying the Book of Shadows, Luna at his heels.

"Playing cards," said Harry idly. "Kat's cheating."

"You're just pissed because you're losing." Catherine said. "Maybe you should…" blue-white lights filled the attic and Hermione appeared with three blonde women in tow.

"Now, could you three change back so we know who we're talking to?" Hermione asked. The sisters snapped their fingers. Haley faded into Paige, Holly to Piper, and Heather to Phoebe.

"There," said Piper. "Now, do you mind telling us what the hell is going on?"

"Well, it's rather hard to explain…" Harry said uncertainly.

"Why don't you tell us anyway," said Piper firmly. As Harry launched into the long story, Catherine called her mother over to the Book of Shadows. The girls began talking in hushed whispers as Harry continued the tale. Coming to an agreement with her daughter, Hermione began reading from the book.

"_Bless them with the knowledge now, another way we don't know how. From the future, through time and space. Settle now, in this place._"

Columns of golden light shot through the window and hit Ron, Luna, Phoebe, Piper, and Paige. All of them instantly collapsed to the floor. Harry turned in his seat to look at Hermione and Catherine.

"What did you do?" he asked.

"Hopefully, we gave them the memories their future selves had." Catherine responded.

"_Hopefully_?" Harry repeated, his tone suspicious.

"Well, yeah. I mean, we could have accidentally erased their memories instead. We won't know until they wake up." Catherine moved to inspect each of them. Harry went to Hermione and looked over the spell in the Book.

"Is this even possible?" he asked.

"I think so." Hermione told him. "You see, time travel is incredibly tricky. Even so, we all experienced everything that happened in the future. Even though we're in the past, it still happened. In theory, we should be able to transfer those memories to them… in theory."

"And in practice?"

"Well, it has never been tried before, unfortunately," Hermione admitted. "This was… a beta test, if you will."

"You tested a spell that you had no idea what it would do on our _friends_?" Harry exclaimed. Hermione smiled and kissed him.

"Love you, too." She said, moving off with Catherine. Harry shook his head and read the spell over again. Soon, the others began to wake. Hermione knelt beside Phoebe. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at Hermione, a confused expression on her face.

"Wha… what happened?" She asked.

"We cast a spell on you." Hermione explained. "To restore your memories from the future. Do you remember anything?" Phoebe thought for a moment, then nodded.

"Yeah, yeah, I do. I remember the war, I remember… I remember _dying_."

"You… you remember dying?" Hermione said.

"Yeah…"

"You think that might be a side effect, Kat?" Hermione called cross the attic to Catherine, who was helping Paige sit up.

"Possibly," Catherine answered. "At least she remembers everything. That was the point in the spell, after all." Hermione turned back to Phoebe.

"Do you feel okay?" she asked.

"Fine," Phoebe responded. "I've got a little headache, but it's nothing serious." Hermione smiled.

"Good."

-.-

Hermione lay in bed, trying to sleep. She wished Harry were there with her, but he was working on a plan to win the war. Dumbledore and several members of the Order had come by to strategize. Harry had told Hermione that he would work on the plan and that she should try to get some sleep. That had been six hours ago, and still Hermione lay awake. Her thoughts dwelled on her relationship with Harry.

Of all the things in the world to fear, she feared they were drifting apart. She knew, subconsciously at least, that it was because of the war. They never had time to be together. They were always working... Always fighting… Always trying to find a way to win a war that seemed as though it could not be won. Even at night, they were separated. Harry worked while Hermione slept, and Harry slept while Hermione worked.

They had been at war for so long; Hermione could barely remember what a peaceful, happy life was like. She often wondered if they would ever win the war. Who said there wasn't another evil force to fight after Grindelwald? Would the-powers-that-be ever allow them to be happy? There were times that Hermione doubted it.

She wasn't afraid of falling out of love with Harry, or vice-versa. She feared that this was all they had to look forward to. A lifetime of war against an unyielding, unending opponent. Hermione was shaken out of her thoughts when Harry's side of the bed sagged under the weight of another person. Hermione rolled over to find Phoebe attempting to quietly slip into the bed.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Phoebe said nervously. "I… I thought you were asleep. I'll just…"

"No, it's okay. Come on." Hermione patted the mattress beside her. Phoebe sank into the bed, pulled the covers up to her neck and shifted so she lay on her side, facing Hermione, who was lying on her back.

"Couldn't sleep?" Hermione inquired, tilting her head to look at Phoebe.

"Nightmares…" Phoebe said, shuddering. "I keep remembering… dying. It's weird..."

"I had that problem after I became a Whitelighter." Hermione commented.

"What did you do?" Phoebe asked.

"I tried not to think about it. Still, even to this day, I remember what it felt like for the last breath to leave my body. You won't ever be able to forget, Phoebe. But in time, it won't bother you." Phoebe sighed and said nothing. Instead, she reached out and took Hermione's hand. The familiar chill swept over both of them, but neither of them said a word about it. Whatever it was, it didn't bother them anymore.

"Thanks," Phoebe whispered. "I mean it, Mione."

"For what?" Hermione asked curiously.

"For… everything. I mean, you forgave me after I… After Harry and I…"

"You aren't still worrying about that, are you?" Hermione asked, yawning.

"It's hard not to." Phoebe said. "I mean, you've done so much for me. You've accepted me and my sisters as family and I…"

"Pheebs, listen. You've got to get over this. I have. We're in the middle of war…. Now isn't the time to doubt ourselves, or the bond that has held us all together."

"Yeah…" Phoebe muttered sleepily. Silence fell between them, and within five minutes, both girls were deep asleep.

-.-

To say that Harry was exhausted was an understatement. In fact, Harry found himself unable to think of a word that described his weariness. He was not certain if this was due to his extreme sleepiness or to the fact that the word he searched for did not exist. He traipsed slowly up the staircase and down the hallway, which had been magically expanded to allow individual rooms for all the house's occupants, to his bedroom.

He smiled to himself as he pushed open the door and spotted Hermione and Phoebe sleeping peacefully. He sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. He reached out to brush a stray strand of hair away from Hermione's face, and was thrown into a premonition. A powerful premonition….

_Harry stood in the sunroom, watching Catherine and Elizabeth playing happily on the floor. The girls, who were at least five, smiled up at him when they noticed him. He smiled back and continued on through the room. Sitting in one of the wickerwork chairs, reading a book, was a very pregnant Phoebe. _

"_It's about time you got here." Phoebe said, closing her book and motioning for him to come closer. Harry stepped closer and sat down on the wickerwork couch, eyeing Phoebe suspiciously. _

"'_It's about time I got here,'" Harry repeated. "What? Were you expecting me?" _

"_I was, actually." she responded. _

"_But how could you…?" Harry asked, bewildered. _

"_Don't try and figure it out, you'll get a headache." _

"_Fine," Harry said with a sigh. "So, just what is all this?" Phoebe sighed sadly and looked at the floor._

"_This is the way the world ends, Harry…at least the world as we know it."_

"_What is that supposed to mean?"_

"_It means, Harry, that six years from now, this is where we'll be. We win the war, Harry, but only you and I survive. Grindelwald activates his machines and kills almost everyone with them. San Francisco and several other cities survive the devices, but not many. Grindelwald then attacked Hogwarts. He was repelled and vanquished, but not without the sacrifice of our friend's lives." _

"_So… so Hermione… Ron, Luna, Ginny, Piper, and Paige… they all died?"_

"_Yeah… and you and I, we… we turned to each other in our grief. It started out as a way to take our minds off of the terrible world in which we live, but… soon, it became something more." Harry shook his head. _

"_No…" he told her firmly. "It can't end this way, not after all we've been through… Not after all we've lost." Phoebe reached out and took Harry's hand. _

"_It's not too late, Harry." She said softly._

"_What?" _

"_Listen, I love you more than anything else in this screwed up world, but deep down I know… I've always known that you don't want this. You don't want me. You needed a friend and you wanted your girls to have a mother. I just happened to be around at the time… made it convenient. _

"_You'll never be able to love anyone else because of her. Hermione has claimed your heart for eternity. Your love for her controls you; it dominates you… and it will destroy you. You love her too much, Harry. You love her far too much to ever be able to let her go."_

"_Pheebs… I hate loving Hermione. I hate the fact that I love her. Loving her has caused her more pain and anguish than anyone deserves… but, I can't help it. I can't not love her… I've tried!"_

"_I'm not blaming you, Harry. I know you can't stop loving her; you wouldn't even if you could. I'm just saying that Hermione must survive for _you _to survive. You have to learn to let go of the one thing you fear losing more than anything else. Until then, neither of us will be able to move on after the war ends." Harry stood and began pacing, trying to think of something to say. In an attempt to break the awkward silence, Harry said,_

"_I assume the baby…" _

"_She's yours, yes." Phoebe told him. "You love her… She may not be Hermione's child, but you still love her." Phoebe sighed and continued. "It won't be any different than it is now. Two people living in the same house because they don't have anywhere else to go… We can still have a chance, Harry… but in order to do that, you have to be able to let Hermione go. I know it's hard, but you have to let her go. She's going to die, Harry, you can't change that." _

"_I've changed a lot." Harry said firmly. "I can change this, too…_

… Harry jerked his hand from Hermione's skin, breaking the premonition. He turned and fell into a chair, holding his face in his hands.

"It can't end like that." Harry whispered to himself. "I won't let it. We've fought so hard to be together…" He sat in that chair for at least an hour, desperately attempting to find a way to end this war by himself without putting Hermione and the others at risk. He failed. He looked up from the floor and watched Phoebe and Hermione sleep. Would a life with Phoebe really be so bad? No, Harry reasoned, it wouldn't. Maybe he _could_ live without Hermione, maybe he really did need to find a way to let her go. He hated the very thought of it, but… but maybe… Harry stood and went to Hermione's side. He gently shook her awake.

"Harry…" Hermione said sleepily. "What…?"

"Honey, can I talk to you?" Hermione nodded and pulled herself out of bed, trying not to wake Phoebe. Harry led Hermione up to the attic and sat down with her on the old, pink couch. Harry then relayed everything future-Phoebe had told him.

"So that's it." Harry finished. He stood and began pacing. "That _can't_ be the future we've fought so long for."

"Maybe it is." Hermione said, trying and failing to stifle a yawn.

"You don't believe that, Mione."

"Don't I?" Hermione retorted. "Look, I don't like it any more than you do, but we have to accept the possibility that some of us may not survive. And if that is the case, those of us who manage to survive must be prepared to move on without those we've lost."

"You're talking like you're ready to die." said Harry incredulously.

"Harry, I'm only saying it's an outcome we both need to prepare for," Hermione said calmly. "I don't want to leave this world not knowing whether you, and the girls, and Phoebe… and everyone else be okay."

"I'll never be okay without you…" Harry muttered.

"You may have to be," Hermione whispered.

"Mione, don't starting talking like…"

"Harry, there's something I've been… _neglecting_ to tell you," Hermione said softly, not meeting his eyes. "I… I didn't want to worry you with anything else, but after your premonition, I… well, I think I should…"

"Just… tell me." said Harry. Hermione heaved a deep sigh.

"You know the spell I've been under? The one that causes pain every time I'm touched? Well, over the past few days… its gotten worse… a lot worse, actually. It's gotten so bad… I can hardly think. I'm tired all the time…I think Grindelwald is… increasing the power of the spell. I don't know much about the spell, but… but I think… there is certainly a possibility… that if he continues empowering the spell… it _could_ kill me."

"You don't know that." Harry said sternly. "You _can't _know that."

"I can feel it, Harry." Hermione said, her voice sounded very tired. Harry stopped pacing and returned to his seat.

"So, what do we do?" Harry asked, allowing his head to fall backwards against the back of the couch and closing his eyes. Hermione let out a long breath and shifted so her head was resting in Harry's lap.

"I don't know…" Hermione whispered. They sat together on the couch for a long while. Hermione quickly fell asleep, but Harry, however, remained wide awake, his mind reeling. As he sat there, playing idly with a lock of Hermione golden brown hair, a thought occurred to him. He gently shook Hermione awake.

"I've just thought of something." He said excitedly. "I think I've found a way to remove that spell."

"Really?" Hermione said, skeptically. "How?"

"Voldemort's going to attack Hogwarts in two weeks, right?" Hermione nodded.

"Of course," she said. "I was captured and held prisoner for months after that attack. I'm not likely to forget that experience too quickly."

"Yeah, well, that's what I was talking about. Voldemort offered you a potion to remove the spell, or at least nullify its effects. If you let yourself be captured again... maybe you could get it."

"You realize what you're asking, don't you?" Hermione asked in a soft voice. "You know what those Death Eaters did to me, and you know they'd do it again if I went back."

"Yeah… I do. I know it's a lot to ask, but… without you, our girls cannot be born."

"You know damn well that's not why you're suggesting this." Hermione responded.

"Okay, fine. Maybe it's not the main reason, but…"

"… but it's the right thing to do." Hermione finished his sentence for him.

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to." Harry told her. "The girls… they would understand." Hermione scoffed.

"They would understand why their mother was more concerned about saving herself a little pain than saving their lives?" Hermione broke off, wiping a tear from her eye. "The things they did to me… were unthinkable, but…" Hermione paused once again, holding her face in her hands. After a moment, she looked back up at him. "I've been through things… that you couldn't imagine. I've been betrayed by people who I deeply trusted, and…"  
"Mione, Piper told me about this…" Harry interrupted. "…about things you've been through in your past. She didn't know what they were, only that your father and Danielle seemed to bring them back up for you. She said… that I shouldn't ask you about it, but…"

"It's okay." Hermione said in a soft voice. "I've never talked about it before…" Harry reached out and took her hand.

"You know, you can always talk to me, Mione."

"I know…" was all she said. Several minutes passed in silence before either one of them spoke again.

"You don't have to talk about it, sweetie." Harry whispered in her ear, noting her reluctance.

"I… I can tell you about it, I just…" Harry shook his head.

"Unless you want to tell me, I don't want to know. The fact is, you can't change what happened… no one can. I know whatever happened to you has had a lasting effect on you, but I don't know anyone else alive on this Earth that is as strong as you are. You don't have to be held prisoner by it any more. You don't have to be afraid." For a moment Hermione said nothing. Harry was about to ask her if she was okay when she spoke again.

"I'll do it." she said quietly. "I'll go back... I'll do whatever Voldemort wants me to do and try to get the potion." Harry gently squeezed her hand.

"I don't like putting you in this position, Mione…"

"You'll have to do without the Power of Three until I can get back." Hermione interrupted.

"Yeah, I know. We managed it last time so I figure we should be able to do it again." Hermione nodded.

"C'mon," she said. "I'm exhausted." She took Harry's hand and led him from the attic and back to their bedroom. Phoebe was still in the bed, deep asleep, oblivious that Hermione had ever left. As soon as Hermione lay down, Phoebe snuggled up against her, nuzzling her head under Hermione's chin. Harry lay down on Hermione's other side and wrapped his arms around her. Hermione quickly fell asleep, but Harry lay awake. He softly stroked Hermione's cheek, while looking over at Phoebe's sleeping form.

"Shit…" he muttered to himself.


	7. The Turning Point

-.-

**Chapter 7**

**The Turning Point**

-.-

Phoebe was the first to wake the next morning. The house was cold, as it normally was in the mornings before anyone had taken the time to turn the heater on. Electing not to go do it herself, she pulled the covers up almost over her head and edged closer to Hermione for warmth. Phoebe's movements woke Hermione, who rubbed her eyes with her free hand, while her other was still being tightly gripped by Phoebe.

"Oh, sorry," Phoebe said apologetically. "Did I wake you?"

"Yeah," Hermione said sleepily. "But it's okay… I needed to get up anyway."

"Now? It's only 5:15..." Phoebe said, glancing at the digital clock on the bedside table. "C'mon, it's Saturday. Sleep in just this once."

"Fine," Hermione muttered. "But if Grindelwald comes by, perhaps one of the others can tell him to come back after we wake up."

"He's not going to come here right this minute." said Phoebe pressing herself even closer to Hermione.

"No… I suppose he isn't…" Hermione said. Phoebe said nothing and within minutes, both girls had fallen asleep.

-.-

"Grindelwald declared war upon myself and my forces. You understand the situation, do you not?"

"Of course I do, only too well, unfortunately. Am I right in assuming that you have a plan?" Voldemort chuckled.

"Indeed, I do." he said. "Even together, we do not have the strength to destroy Grindelwald. Only the Charmed Ones possess such of power." The Source sighed deeply.

"Please tell me you aren't suggesting what I think you are."

"Alas, I am. Separate, we all lose. Together, we might stand a chance. If we ally with the Order of the Phoenix, I am confident that we will prevail against Grindelwald."

"And if Dumbledore refuses your cease-fire offer?"

"He won't. He will not like it, he'll think we are going to betray him, but he'll accept it." The Source shrugged.

"Very well. My forces are at your disposal. I will be in touch." Fire engulfed the Source and he was gone. Voldemort remained in the dark chamber for a moment longer before Disapparating.

-.-

Harry awoke sometime around noon with a plan fully formed in his mind. It was as though he had been working on it the entire night as he slept. It was the perfect plan. It was so obvious, so completely apparent that he was surprised he hadn't thought of it before. Without bothering to wake Phoebe and Hermione, he scrambled out of bed, scribbled a note to say where he'd gone, and orbed out.

He arrived in the corridor outside Dumbledore's office a moment later. He gave the password and stepped onto the spiraling staircase. He rode it to the top and was just about to knock on the door when he heard several voices arguing on the other side.

"This is ridiculous." One voice, a deep, male one, said. "There's no possible way we can agree to that."

"We may have no choice." A second voice, this one female, retorted. Interested, Harry knocked and a voice Harry recognized as Dumbledore's beckoned him inside. He pulled open the door and entered the office. Dumbledore sat at his desk, his hands folded in his lap. Piper, Paige, Ron, Luna, Catherine and a group of other Order members, some Harry recognized and others he didn't were seated around the headmaster's desk. It was clear from the looks on everyone's faces that they were in deep disagreement.

"Ah, Harry." said Dumbledore. "Welcome, welcome."

"What's this about?" Harry asked, gesturing at the assembled group.

"I've been forced to call an emergency meeting." said Dumbledore.

"And none of you thought Phoebe, Hermione, and myself should be involved?"

"Er… well…" Piper said. "We just thought… I mean you three were asleep and we knew we could fill you in on whatever happened…"

"Fill me in, then." said Harry, a severe look on his face.

"Well," Catherine began furiously. "_Someone…_" Her gaze flickered over to Dumbledore. "Seems to think we should accept Voldemort's latest offer."

"Latest offer?" Harry repeated, bemused. "Since when does Voldemort make offers?"

"Since now," said Paige. "He's offering to ally with us against Grindelwald." That little statement knocked Harry's plan clean out of his mind. A new plan was quickly formulating in his brain, one that might just get Hermione the potion she needed.

"I was under the impression that they were on the same side." said Harry slowly.

"Well, they were," Ron said. "But from the look of things, Grindelwald's decided to strike out on his own. He's trying to eliminate Voldemort and the Source… as well as us."

"Then that's it." Harry said. "Grindelwald's finished his work in the future. He's come back."

"That is what we thought as well," Dumbledore agreed. "It seems to be the only logical conclusion."

"Then we should accept the offer." said Harry firmly. Catherine's jaw dropped.

"_What_?" She shouted, staring at Harry with a look of complete disbelief on her face. "You… you're talking about allying ourselves with two of the greatest evils known to wizard-kind!"

"I know," said Harry quietly. "But there's something I haven't have a chance to tell anyone yet. Hermione… she's dying. The spell she's under… she thinks Grindelwald is increasing its power. Now, Voldemort had a potion that could remove the spell, but we have no way to get it. Maybe, if we ally with Voldemort, part of the agreement could be him giving us that potion." Silence followed Harry's pronouncement. For several moments no one spoke, until Piper moved closer to Harry, a look of sadness in her eyes.

"She… she's dying?" Piper asked, quietly. "You're sure?"

"Yeah… she said she could feel it."

"Would Mum agree to this?" Catherine asked, her voice quiet. "Would she ally with Voldemort even if it meant she might get that potion?" Harry sighed very deeply and shrugged.

"Kat, I have no idea what your mother would do," he said. "The point is, if we can find a way to save her, we have to try."

-.-

"Mione…."

"Hmm?"

"What time is it?"

"I don't know… 11:34..." Hermione said, raising her head enough to check the clock.

"Ugh…" Phoebe groaned, sitting up and struggling out of bed. As she did so, a column of fire erupted in the center of the room and a demon Phoebe knew all too well appeared.

"Hermione!" She screamed, stumbling backwards "Demon! No powers! Do something!" Before Hermione had even managed to extract herself properly from the bed, the demon had launched a fireball, which sent her flying into the wall on the opposite side of the room. Even as Phoebe ran to Hermione's side, the demon advanced on them. Fortunately, the impact had not caused Hermione to lose consciousness. She blasted the demon with a wave of her hand. It didn't even phase him. The demon glared down at her furiously. Hermione pulled Phoebe behind her, offering the older woman slight protection from the demon.

"Oh, how sweet…" The demon growled, his eyes burning into Hermione's.

"Mione, that's Zankou!" Phoebe whispered in her ear as they slowly backed away from Zankou, edging cautiously toward the door. "You can't vanquish him without the Power of Three, and maybe not even with that." Hermione blasted Zankou several more times and then turned scurried from the room, Phoebe only a few steps ahead of her.

"Harry!" Hermione called, racing up the stairs to the attic. "Catherine!" Swirling blue-white lights announced their arrival.

"Hermione? Phoebe? What's going on?" Harry inquired. Zankou's shouts from downstairs quickly answered his question. Hermione hurriedly flipped through the Book of Shadows as Zankou's footsteps grew closer.

"Would that work?" Hermione asked, indicating the spell she had found. Phoebe shrugged.

"It might…"

"That's good enough." Hermione said, motioning for Harry and Catherine to join her by the Book.

"Enough games!" Zankou roared, barging into the room, an energy ball crackling in his hand.

"Prudence, Penelope, Patricia," Hermione began.

"Melinda, Astrid, Helena," Harry continued.

"Laura, and Grace." Catherine finished.

"Halliwell witches, stand strong beside us." Harry, Hermione, and Catherine said together. "Vanquish this evil from time and space." Zankou bellowed as curse and exploded. Harry threw up his hands and looked up at the ceiling.

"It's safe!" he shouted. Ron, Luna, Paige and Piper Apparated into the attic.

"So, could one of you please explain which demon we've attracted that needed the Source vanquishing spell?" Harry asked, turning to Hermione and Phoebe.

"Zankou," said Phoebe. "But I think you got him. We never got the cha…" Phoebe broke off, watching as a spiraling, black mass appeared. It swirled and began to take on a shape. In moments, Zankou stood before them once again, an evil look in his eyes. He laughed menacingly and flamed out.

"That's the most powerful spell in existence! Is there any particular reason why that didn't work?" Catherine demanded of Phoebe, who shrugged.

"I said it _might _work." she muttered. "I didn't say it would."

"It was worth a shot." Hermione said wearily, closing the Book of Shadows.

"Wait," said Harry. "I thought Zankou was supposed to be helping us, not killing us."

"_Malfoy _said that," Catherine growled, glancing casually at her mother. "That generally means it isn't true."

"Where is _Mister Malfoy_, anyway?" Harry asked.

"I don't…" Hermione began. She paused, closing her eyes. After a moment, she slammed her hand on the Book in anger.

"I can't sense him." Hermione said. "Which means only one thing…"

"He's in the Underworld." Catherine finished Hermione's sentence for her. "I'll go get him…" She said lamely and orbed away.

"So, where've you lot been?" Hermione asked as Catherine disappeared.

"Order meeting," said Harry, a hint of irritation in his voice. "A meeting _some _people didn't think you, Phoebe and I deserved to be present in."

"Harry…" Piper moaned in an exasperated voice.

"Yeah, yeah…" Harry muttered. "I know. It's just the principle."

"If one of you could explain what happened…" said Phoebe, hoping to draw the others back on topic.

"Voldemort sent Dumbledore a message." Harry began. "He's proposing we form an alliance against Grindelwald."

"You _can't _be serious!" Hermione exclaimed. "We're _not_ going to…"

"Wait a minute," Harry told her. "You haven't heard everything yet. Dumbledore sent Voldemort a response telling him that if, and only if, he gave us that potion we need would we agree." Hermione shook her head disbelievingly.

"Why would he agree to that?"

"Because he's just as screwed as we are." Ron said. "Grindelwald has declared war on Voldemort _and _the Source. From the sound of things, Grindelwald's winning."

"Damn…" Phoebe muttered, sitting down on the old, pink couch that still resided in the attic. "Are we seriously considering this?"

"I never thought it would come to this," Harry admitted. "But… if we don't do this…" Hermione shook her head.

"No," she said defiantly. "We're not doing this. We've fought for _years _to kill that bastard! We're not throwing in our lot with him now. Not even if it will save my life…"

"Hold on a minute!" Phoebe exclaimed, leaping from the couch and returning to Hermione's side. "What do you mean by 'save your life'? You… you're not dying… are you?" Hermione traced the symbol on the front of the Book of Shadows with her forefinger several times before answering.

"I… I can't be certain, but…" she said, looking up at Phoebe, who was watching her through tear-filled eyes. It was a moment before anyone said anything. It was Paige who broke the silence.

"So, what are we going to do?" she asked in a tentative voice.

"We're going to do it." Phoebe said matter-of-factly.

"Phoebe…" Hermione began. Phoebe sighed and took Hermione's hand. She led her away from the others and began speaking in a voice so soft Hermione had to lean closer to understand what she was saying.

"You are one of the best friends I have ever had. When Harry and I… when we confessed what we'd done, I didn't feel bad about what we'd done. I felt bad because I had hurt you. I love you as though you're one of my sisters too. We share a bond, Mione. You said so yourself. I'm more connected to you than anyone else in the world. If doing this could possibly save you… to me, it's worth it." Hermione sighed wearily, but she knew it would be pointless to argue.

"Fine," she said, though she didn't look happy about it. "Fine," she repeated, this time speaking to the others in the room. "We… we'll give this ridiculous idea a shot."

"I'm glad you agreed," Harry told her with a chuckle. "Because I told Dumbledore to send Voldemort our terms before we left Hogwarts."

"Harry…" Hermione began, but she was interrupted by Catherine, who orbed into the room with the sleeve of her blouse on fire. She extinguished the flames with her wand, and investigated the large burn on her arm.

"Damn it!" She shouted as Hermione placed her hand over the wound to heal it.

"What happened?" she asked when she was certain the burn was healing well.

"Malfoy attacked me!" Catherine exclaimed furiously. "He was going on about Zankou betraying him and then he drew his wand and started trying to curse me!"

"So much for that…" Harry muttered. "How long did our allegiance with him last this time? Three weeks?"

"Two," Paige said grimly. "But who's counting."

"Ugh… this is all _so_ wrong." Hermione muttered, taking a seat on the old, pink couch.

"So what do we do now?" Catherine asked, plopping down on the couch next to her mother and resting her head on her shoulder.

"Wait for Voldemort's response." Harry said with a sigh. "It's all we _can _do."


	8. Deadly Alliance

-.-

**Chapter 8**

**Deadly Alliance**

-.-

"If you think I am doing this because I care about Ms. Granger's fate, you are incorrect. We need the Charmed Ones as much as they need us. As much as I would love to see that little… girl… die a horrible death that I could have prevented, in this situation, she is needed in order for our kind to survive." The Source nodded, clearly still unsatisfied.

"I trust you know what you are doing,"

-.-

"You're _not_ serious!"

"I am dead serious, Ms. Granger. Lord Voldemort and the Source will arrive here at Hogwarts tomorrow." They were in Dumbledore's office. Voldemort had responded to the Order's terms earlier that day. He had agreed. "Voldemort claims that Grindelwald is preparing a massive assault upon this school." Dumbledore continued. "We have no chance of holding it on our own. Grindelwald will destroy the castle. We _cannot _let that happen. Voldemort has offered to assist in the defense of Hogwarts. I have accepted."

"I know we need his help, but _letting him inside Hogwarts_? That's going a bit too far." Paige said, while the others nodded in agreement.

"We all know Voldemort's going to betray us the first chance he gets." Catherine added. "Letting him in the castle is just like offering ourselves to him. I mean, how do we know he's not still allied with Grindelwald? This could all be a trap."

"Reports prove that Grindelwald and Voldemort _are _at war." Dumbledore said firmly. "Losses on both sides are mounting."

"Why not just let them kill each other?" Ron suggested with a shrug. "It'd make things easier for us."

"Grindelwald seems intent on wiping us and Voldemort out at the same time." Dumbledore explained. "He is not focusing all his forces on Voldemort. Most of his army is still attacking us." Harry sighed deeply and spoke for the first time in the discussion with had been going on for nearly an hour.

"So, it's really come to this…" he muttered darkly. "We're letting our most hated enemy into the most secure structure on Earth."

"I don't like it any more than you do, Harry." said Dumbledore. "But the decision has already been made. I will expect you all here tomorrow for Voldemort's arrival. I want all everyone back in the fold if he tries anything." The group stood and trooped out of the office. Once out in the corridor, Catherine began to express her feelings in a rather loud voice.

"I swear, I think he's losing his mind in his old age!" she shouted furiously. "Letting Voldemort in the castle? We've got to do something about this."

"There's not much we can do." said Paige. "Dumbledore's already made his decision."

"Fuck Dumbledore's decision!" Catherine shouted.

"_Catherine!_" Hermione exclaimed, eyeing her daughter in a way only a mother could.

"I'm sorry, Mum, but…"

"She's right." Harry admitted, wrapping his arm around Hermione's shoulders. "Dumbledore… I don't know. There's something up with him."

"He's tired." said Luna observationally. "We all are."

"Yeah, well, I'm dying," Hermione said irritably. "And I _still _think this is a bad idea."

"Point taken," Luna muttered.

"The Source vanquishing spell will kill Voldemort, correct?" asked Phoebe curiously.

"Yeah, at least it worked last time." Harry told her.

"Well, then if he tries anything, just say the spell." Phoebe suggested. "Just stay together, you three so you can get the spell off as quickly as possible."

"That's not a bad idea." Ron admitted.

"No, it's not." agreed Catherine. "In fact, why not just vanquish him when he walks through the door? He's probably going to try the same thing, after all. Why pass up the opportunity to kill the Charmed Ones?"

"Under normal circumstance, Kat, I would agree with you." said Hermione. "But Dumbledore is right about one thing. Voldemort needs us and we need him. This isn't about good versus evil anymore… It's about survival."

"Maybe it is, but even so…"

"Kat, enough," said Hermione. Her voice was stern, but she didn't sound angry. "None of us like this, especially not me… but there's nothing we can do about it now. Dumbledore was right when he said we needed everyone back in the fold. The best thing we can do now is hope that Voldemort is serious about an alliance." They'd reached the entrance hall by now, and they were just about to open the oak front doors when a column of fire erupted in their path.

"Oh, hell…" Piper growled, when she realized who it was.

"What the hell are _you _doing here?" Hermione inquired, speaking in a deadly calm and cold voice and glaring at her father with an intense look of pure hatred on her face.

"Is that any way to speak to your father?

"Daniel, I'm not in the mood." Hermione warned, her hand flexing involuntarily.

"Since when do you use my first name?" Daniel asked, sounding genuinely curious.

"Since you decided to piss me off," Hermione growled.

"So, that's how this is going to go, is it?" Daniel sighed. "I had hoped you wouldn't put up a fight." Hermione chuckled.

"You're going to get much more than a fight." She glanced at Harry and Catherine. "Prudence, Penelope, Patricia,"

"Melinda," Catherine continued. "Astrid, Helena…"

"No, no, no…" Daniel laughed. He clapped his hands together and sent all of them flying across the Entrance Hall. "Naughty, naughty…" A jet of green light caught Daniel in the side of his face. He chuckled darkly and plucked Hermione's wand from her hand with a wave of his own.

"Unforgivable curses?" Daniel asked, brushing his fingers over the side of his face where the spell had grazed him. "I didn't know you had it in you."

"At one point in my life, I didn't." Hermione told him. "Now, though… I do."

"No matter," he said lightly. "Simple curses like that have no effect on me."

"Really?" Catherine said loudly. "How about this one? _Demon of fear, horror, and death. Fire will take your very breath!_" Nothing happened.

"Is that really the best you have?" Daniel queried, laughter in his voice.

"No." said a quiet voice from the top of the marble staircase. Daniel's eyes widened in fear as he spotted Dumbledore striding quickly down the stairs, wand in hand. Daniel glanced at Hermione, blew her a kiss and said, "We'll finish this later." Without another word, he flamed out. Hermione summoned her fallen wand from the floor with a wave of her hand.

"I hate to say this about your father, Hermione." Phoebe said gently, putting a comforting arm around her friend. "But we _really _need to find a way to kill him."

"The Source vanquishing spell _would _have worked." Piper confirmed. "He's more powerful than an upper level demon, so I think that spell would be our best bet." Hermione nodded and looked up at Dumbledore.

"Thank you." She told him.

"It was nothing, Ms. Granger, I assure you. I was simply on my way to the Great Hall to sample some of that delicious treacle tart and I heard the sounds of battle. Now, you should all return to the manor and rest. I am certain tomorrow will be tiring for us all." Dumbledore turned and strode into the Great Hall without another word.

-.-

"What are you doing?"

"Scrying," Hermione replied in preoccupied tones, not looking up at her daughter.

"For what?" Catherine wanted to know. "Evil?

"No... well, it would depend on her mood," Hermione smirked. "I'm looking for Ginny… and I just found her." Hermione looked up at Catherine and released the crystal. "I'm going after her. Want to come along?" Catherine shrugged.

"Sure, why not?"

"Good." Hermione said. "Considering Ginny would simply love to kill me in this time period." Hermione handed her a potion vial filled with purple liquid. "Stun potion." she explained. "Just in case." Hermione finished scribbling down a spell from the Book. "Follow me." she said. Together they orbed out….

…. And reappeared in the Great Hall of Magic School.

"Magic School?" Catherine asked curiously, tilting her head to one side and gazing inquisitively at her mother.

"That's where the crystal dropped," said Hermione idly. "She should be here..." A jet of green light barely missed Catherine as it coursed across the room. Hermione and Catherine spun around. Ginny stood there, wand raised.

"What are you doing here?" Ginny demanded, her eyes narrowed angrily.

"I could ask you the same thing." Hermione retorted. Ginny moved to cast another spell. Hermione froze her with a lazy wave of her hand.

"Sometimes I'd really like to blow her up." she muttered. Catherine laughed. Hermione unfolded the paper she'd written the spell on earlier and held it out so Catherine could read it too.

"_Bless her with the knowledge now, another way we don't know how. From the future, through time and space. Settle now, in this place._" Ginny gazed blearily at Hermione and Catherine for a moment, then promptly collapsed. Hermione moved to Ginny's side while Catherine scanned the room, as though expecting someone else to attack them. Slowly, Ginny began to wake.

"Hey," Hermione said softly. "How do you feel?"

"Okay, I guess…. What happened?"

"It's a... _long_ story." Hermione said, gripping Ginny's hand and motioning for Catherine to orb back to the castle. "I'll explain when we get back to Hogwarts."

-.-

Sweat beaded on her tanned skin, making the exposed flesh shine in the rays of moonlight coming through the open window. She arched her back and let out a soft moan of pleasure. Harry collapsed beside her and wrapped his arms around her in a loving embrace.

"Dumbledore said we were supposed to be resting." Hermione whispered, a smile playing pleasantly on her lips.

"This is more fun." Harry said with a chuckle.

"Mmm…" Hermione moaned. "Yeah… it is." They both fell silent. Harry lay there, listening as Hermione's heartbeat slowly returned to normal. Soon enough, Harry noticed that her breathing had grown even and knew that she had fallen asleep.

"It'll all be over soon." Harry whispered in her ear and stroked the side of her face gently. "It'll be over soon… for all of us."

-.-

It was under a blood red sky the following evening that Lord Voldemort's entourage arrived at the school. Dumbledore stood at the base of the marble staircase in the Entrance Hall. His hands were clasped behind his back and he retained an essence of complete calm. Harry stood beside him, his gaze fully focused on the oak front doors, seemingly unaware of the goings on around him.

Hermione stood behind him and slightly to the left. She had her arms folded across her chest and she looked extremely irritated. Catherine stood next to her, her arms folded in the same way as her mother's were, and she even wore the same expression on her face. It was at times like these that her resemblance to Hermione was more apparent than ever.

A group of other Order members were assembled around the Hall. Each of them looked agitated and on edge. Ron, Luna, Piper, Phoebe, and Paige were not there. They were in the Great Hall, preparing a defense for Grindelwald's rumored attack.

"I still think this is a bad idea." Catherine whispered in her mother's ear. Hermione nodded.

"As do I, Kat." Hermione agreed as the oak front doors creaked open. "This will end badly, this deadly alliance of ours." Voldemort, the Source, and a selection of demons and Death Eaters strode into the Hall. Voldemort walked straight up to Dumbledore. His reddish eyes scanned the crowd. Dumbledore extended his hand. Shockingly, Voldemort accepted it and they shook.

"Well, well, well," Voldemort said. "Shall we make this official?"


	9. The Crossroads of Destiny

-.-

**Chapter 9**

**The Crossroads of Destiny**

-.-

"Yes," said Dumbledore grimly. "We should make this official."

"Lead the way." said Voldemort lightly.

"I don't think so," said Harry fiercely. "You don't leave this room until you prove you've got that potion." Voldemort chuckled darkly.

"My, my, my, aren't we in a twist?" he rolled his red eyes. "Oh, very well." Voldemort reached into his robes and presented a small vial full of orange liquid. Harry reached out to take it. Their hands touched for only a second as he accepted the bottle from Voldemort. A searing pain burned across Harry's scar. He winced. Voldemort smiled.

"Well, drink up!" Voldemort exclaimed as Harry passed Hermione the vial. Hermione uncorked it, glanced cautiously at Voldemort, then drained the vial completely.

"Well?" Harry asked.

"I… I feel…" She collapsed. Harry caught her and lowered her slowly to the floor before spinning to face Voldemort, wand at the ready.

"What did you do to her?" Harry demanded.

"She'll be fine," said Voldemort wearily. "I haven't poisoned her. You'll remember that I need your precious Power of Three just as intact as you do." Hermione whimpered in Harry's arms. Her eyes fluttered open and a look of innocent confusion appeared on her face.

"What happened?" she asked in a sleepy voice.

"You tell us." said Harry. "Did the potion work?"

"I… yeah," she said weakly. "I think it did."

"You see?" Voldemort said airily. "I _do_ keep my word. Now, if you don't mind, we should hurry. Grindelwald will be here soon, and we must be prepare." He gestured toward the Great Hall. Dumbledore led the way, followed by Harry who glared at Voldemort as he passed. Catherine simply strode passed him, staring straight ahead. Hermione, however, gave Voldemort a very furtive look and followed the others into the Great Hall.

-.-

"What do you think?"

"Not much more we can do, really. This is the fifth time we've had to defend this castle, but I've never felt as confident as I do now."

"You felt confident the last time this happened?" Hermione asked curiously, looking up at Harry with an amused smile on her face.

"You mean when you died and we lost the school?" Harry asked her. "Not a bit, however, that turned out all right... in the end. I don't believe that after all we've been through, we aren't meant to win this." When Hermione said nothing, Harry looked up from the Book of Shadows. Hermione was standing near the railing of the Astronomy tower, gazing out at the grounds.

"The end is near," she said, suddenly.

"What's that?" Harry asked, bemused.

"This war will end soon, one way or another." She paused and turned to face him, an expression of dawning comprehension on her face. "The world is at a crossroads, Harry... I can feel it. Things are changing... and there's a storm coming."

"I know," said Harry gently. "Grindelwald's..."

"No," Hermione said distantly. "It's not Grindelwald, not... It isn't one _specific_ thing. More like... a dark _time_ is on the horizon. Destiny is about to play its hand, Harry. We're standing at the crossroads of our destinies... What happens next will shape was is to come."

-.-

Hermione rushed into the bathroom, shedding her clothing before the door had even fully closed. Once undressed, she levitated several feet in the air and breathed a deep sigh of relief. The pain in her body faded away and she brushed her hair out of her eyes. Voldemort's potion hadn't worked, but she had been unable to tell Harry so. She couldn't bring herself to shatter his happiness.

Hermione needed Harry focused if they were going to win this, and although she hated herself for admitting it... They needed Voldemort too.

-.-

"Granger?" Hermione, who had been staring lazily out across the nearly completed fortifications from atop the Astronomy Tower, spun around. She rolled her eyes when she spotted Voldemort striding toward her.

"What do you want?" She asked exhaustedly.

"To ask you a question. Would you mind?" Hermione shrugged. "I'll take that as a 'yes' then. Why didn't you tell them?"

"Tell them what?" Hermione asked curiously.

"That the potion I gave you didn't work." Hermione said nothing. "I expected you to." Voldemort continued. "In fact, I'm a little disappointed. I had prepared a whole song and dance to convince you all that the potion took time to begin working."  
"And I deprived you of that? I'm so terribly sorry." Hermione said sarcastically. Voldemort chuckled.

"I'm serious, I want to know. Why hide the truth from them?" Hermione sighed.

"Harry was so happy at the prospect of getting that potion… I… I didn't have the heart to disappoint him."

"Well, aren't you just a kind little thing?" asked Voldemort.

"I consider it a character trait, along with a burning hatred of all things evil," Hermione deadpanned. "And seeing as you fall under that category… and the fact that I'm suddenly in a rather _rhyming_ mood… I'd suggest you move along_…. now_."

"Fine, no need to get upset. My forces will be needing a final briefing before the battle." He turned and left the tower. Hermione remained there a moment longer, seemingly lost in thought. Letting out a long breath, she dissolved in a shower of blue-white light.

-.-

Hermione reformed beside the Gryffindor table where Harry and the others sat, still planning Hogwarts' defense.

"If we station two trebuchets here, and here," Catherine was saying, pointing at two separate points on a large map of Hogwarts. "They should provide adequate defensive fire."

"Excellent," said Dumbledore. "I approve." He then noticed Hermione. "Ah, Ms. Granger, I'm glad you're here. We need you to whip up another cauldron of that shield potion of yours." Catherine groaned.

"That's the potion that needs my blood." She muttered, visibly shuddering.

"Indeed." said Dumbledore.

"Well, if my lovely daughter will consent to parting with a few drops of blood, I'd be happy to." Hermione told Dumbledore, who nodded and swept from the Great Hall.

"Well?" Hermione asked, turning to Catherine. Catherine rolled her eyes.

"_Fine_," Catherine said exasperatedly. Hermione took Catherine's hand and they orbed out as the others went back to their planning.

"Right," Luna said, restarting their conversation. "We all know Voldemort's going to betray us at some point. We need to be ready."

"But what can we do?" Ginny asked. "Anything we do Voldemort will see coming."

"No," Harry said, looking up from the map with a broad smile on his face. "He's not going to see this coming."

-.-

Catherine stiffened as her mother gently pricked her forefinger. Hermione allowed several drops of blood to fall into the vial she held in her hand. She then held her hand over the wound and began to heal it. A minute later, her finger was returned to normal.

"Thanks." Catherine said, giving her mother a warm smile and placed the Book of Shadows on the table beside the cauldron.

"Well, that's it." Hermione said. "Now it has to simmer for thirty minutes and it should be done." Catherine nodded and walked away from the potion. She leaned against the cold railing and studied the near-complete defenses.

"Well?" she said after a moment.

"Well, what?" Hermione asked, running her finger down the list of ingredients in the Book to make sure she had done everything correctly.

"Do you… do you think we stand a chance?" Hermione closed the Book and moved to her daughter's side.

"I asked Harry the same question last night."

"And what did he say?"

"He said he was confident, at least more so than he has been before."

"And what do _you _think?" Catherine inquired.

"I have hope. Not much more than that, though. Still, hope is all I've had for a long time, maybe that's all we need."

"Thanks, Mum. You've really helped clarify this issue." Hermione chuckled.

"I don't have any answers, Catherine. I can't say we'll win because it's possible that we won't."

"I didn't expect you to have all the answers, I just…" Catherine broke off as a massive ball of fire blasted skyward from the edge of the forest. It arced over the grounds and slammed into the Great Hall. The structure remained standing, but a red-rimmed hole had been burned clean through it. Death Eaters and demons poured from the shadows of the forest.

"Son of a bitch!" Catherine exclaimed as Hermione seized her hand and they dissolved into bluish mist and then reappeared in the Great Hall, which was in shambles.

"_Shit!_" Catherine exclaimed, following her mother over to Piper and Phoebe, who were gathering potions and plans from the table.

"Hermione! Catherine! Thank God!" Phoebe said when she saw them. "After the attack began, we weren't sure if…"

"We're fine." Hermione said briskly. "Where are the others?"

"Outside," Piper said. "They're trying to rally what forces we have and prepare a counter attack."

"How's it going out there?" asked Catherine.

"About as well as it's going in here," Phoebe told her as another explosion rocked the Great Hall. "We've got to get out of here! Piper and I are going to take this stuff down to the Order headquarters in the dungeons."

"Kat, go with them." Hermione told her daughter. "I don't want them running into Death Eaters on their way."

"Fine," said Catherine. "But where are you going?"

"To check on the potion… We're going to need it." Hermione pressed the Book of Shadows into Catherine's hands. "Be careful."

"Yeah, you too..." Catherine responded. She turned and led Piper and Phoebe from the Hall. By the time the broken door had swung shut behind them, Hermione had orbed out.

Catherine led Phoebe and Piper quickly across the Entrance Hall, in which numerous battles raged. Demons and Death Eaters pressed the Order members farther up the Marble Staircase. Once safely across the Hall, they hurried down a long staircase that led to the dungeons. Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, four columns of fire erupted in their path. Catherine's eyes widened and she quickly ushered Phoebe and Piper into an empty classroom. Hurried footsteps coming from the staircase they had just descended announced the arrival of new demons.

"_Double shit!_" She exclaimed, flinging herself into the classroom with Piper and Phoebe and bolted the door behind her.

-.-

Hermione reformed in the Astronomy Tower a moment later. She hurried over to the cauldron. It had only been twenty minutes, but even so, she had to try it. The castle wouldn't still be standing in ten minutes without the shield. Without turning off the fire, she collected the vial which contained Catherine's blood. She uncorked it and poured its contents into the cauldron….

It opened like a flower, a mass, purple-blue flower. Its shimmering walls fell from the sky, pitching up dirt as the protective bubble shield completely formed over the castle. Balls of fire slammed into the shield, which absorbed their impacts. Cheers went up all over the grounds at the sight of the shield. The Order of the Phoenix withdrew under the shield. Grindelwald's forces gave chase, but when they touched the shield, they were thrown back, unable to step through it. It had all come down to this. The Battle of Hogwarts had begun.


	10. The End Draws Near

-.-

**Chapter 10**

**The End Draws Near**

-.-

"So, what do we do now?"

"Why the hell do I have to have all the plans?"

"Because you're the only one here with powers, Kat!"

"So?"

"So, get us out of here! Preferably alive!" Catherine gave Phoebe a furious glare.

"Fine! Make sure you've got all that crap you brought down here. We're going to have to make this quick." Catherine dug into her robe pocket and retrieved two potions vials and her wand.

"Here," She said, pressing the potion vials into Phoebe's hand and the wand into Piper's. "Those potions are some of my best, and Piper, we've taught you enough spells for you to be able to cast a few if need be. I'll go out first, Phoebe, you take the middle, and Piper, bring up the rear." Catherine took another potion out of her pocket.

"What's that?" asked Phoebe.

"A potion Mum gave me. She didn't say exactly what it does, but the potions she makes tend to go boom, which is what I'm hoping for now." Catherine eased open the door, tossed the vial, and slammed the door shut again. The explosion was deafening. The door Catherine had been holding closed was blown off its hinges. Catherine was thrown across the room. The Death Eaters, it seemed, had been incinerated. While Piper helped Catherine to her feet, Phoebe investigated what remained of the corridor.

"Damn…" Phoebe whispered, awestruck. "She used Jacklebeet… I'd say at least three tablespoons of the stuff."

"That woman's crazy…" Piper said, sounding thoroughly awed. "What was she trying to do, blow the castle up? With that much Jacklebeet she couldn't have had much else in mind."

"I don't care if she wanted to blow the country off the map," Catherine growled, nursing a large gash on her left forearm. "The potion saved our lives, that's all I care about. Now, let's get the hell out of here before more Death Eaters show up." Piper and Phoebe both nodded, and quickly followed Catherine down the corridor.

-.-

"What are you doing up here?" Hermione asked, looking up from the bubbling shield potion at Harry, who had just orbed up onto the Astronomy Tower.

"I wanted to make sure you were safe." Harry told her. "After the Great Hall collapsed, I got worried. Where's Catherine?" 

"She's escorting Phoebe and Piper down to the Order headquarters." Hermione explained. "I didn't want them going alone, what with the possibility of them running into Death Eaters."

"Good, good… they should be safe down there," said Harry. A massive explosion erupted on the ground and the tower trembled. "I need to go," he said grimly. "Will you be okay up here?"

"Harry, I'll be fine. There's no way any demon or Death Eater can get up here." Harry gripped her hand momentarily, as though planning to say something else. Whatever it was, he decided against it and said,

"Keep that shield up for us." He orbed out. Hermione turned back to the simmering cauldron. Such a fine thread to hold back the tide of evil waiting to rush in on them, she thought, watching the flickering flames beneath the cauldron. Hermione was shaken from her thoughts when a column of fire erupted in the doorway.

"Hello, my dear." Daniel said, smiling grimly at her.

"H… how did you get passed the shield?" Hermione asked, visibly shaken by his sudden appearance.

"I've picked up a few tricks in my time, sweetheart." Without another word, he gripped Hermione's arm and flamed out.

-.-

Harry reformed in the dungeon the Order was using as its headquarters. He spotted Dumbledore standing over a large holographic monitor, which displayed the entire battlefield outside. Paige, Piper, Phoebe, and Catherine stood with him. He made his way toward them.

"Catherine," he said. "Piper, Phoebe. I'm glad to see you made it."

"Have you seen Hermione?" Phoebe asked.

"Yeah, I just saw her. Why?"

"Because she's gone," Phoebe gestured at the large monitor. "That's an advanced version of the Marauder's Map. It can show anyone, anywhere, at any time. The only thing is, Hermione's not in the Astronomy Tower, or anywhere in the castle, or anywhere on the grounds. It's like she just disappeared."

"But, I just spoke with her… only seconds ago. Where could she have gone? Did you see anyone with her on that thing?" Dumbledore shook his head.

"I'm afraid not. We were not looking at the Astronomy Tower at the time."

"Well, she wouldn't just leave…" Harry said firmly. "Someone had to make her leave, and I think I know who."

"Well, we can't worry about it now." Paige said. "We've got to stop Grindelwald's attack before we can help Hermione."

"Regrettably, I agree." Harry said. "Hermione would want the castle protected, no matter the cost." Harry looked to Catherine. "C'mon," he said. "We're going to need your help."

Harry and Catherine orbed into a small Order encampment, just inside the shield. Ron, Luna, and Ginny sat around the fire with other Order members, nursing their wounds.

"Harry! Catherine!" Ron called when he spotted them. "We were starting to get worried. How are the others?"

"There fine, all except for Hermione." Harry responded.

"What happened?" Luna inquired.

"She's gone. I think she was taken from the Astronomy Tower by her father."

"Luna and I can go get her." Ginny volunteered. "Any idea where he took her?"

"To Grindelwald, if I were to guess." said Harry dryly. "But we don't know where he is and we can't devote anyone to finding him. Hogwarts takes priority now. Would I rather abandon the school and go after her? Of course, but we have to protect Hogwarts."

"Harry's right," said Catherine firmly. "I would love to brave all and hasten to her rescue, but we don't have the manpower to rescue Mum and fight a war at the same time. It will take an army to breach Grindelwald's defenses. We've only got the one army and it's a little busy at the moment. Simply put, we can lose Mum… we _can't _lose Hogwarts. If we do then the war is over and it won't matter that we've saved her."

"I know…" said Ginny quietly. "I just… with the shield, we hardly need an army here. As long as the shield holds, we'll be…" The Astronomy Tower exploded. It seemed the Order hadn't managed to intercept all the demons and Death Eaters in the castle. The shield flickered and collapsed. They dropped to the ground as a torrent of spells arced into the sky, racing toward them like multicolored blobs of fire.

"I think it's time." Catherine told Harry, edging closer to him, making certain to keep herself hidden behind a fallen tree.

"Right," Harry said. He pointed his wand skyward and shot a jet of red sparks into the night sky. High above them, the stars rippled. A single dragon, jet black in color, swooped down upon Grindelwald's forces. Another dragon appeared, following the first one on its course, fire blazing from its mouth. Together, they glided over the battlefield, leaving long trails of fire on the ground. Even with the mounting casualties Grindelwald was suffering, his army continued to press the Order back into the castle. Unfortunately for Grindelwald, his army became so focused on breaching the castle's outer defensive wall, they were unprepared for the Order's secret weapon.

A battle cry sounded from the edge of the forest. Death Eaters raced toward Grindelwald's rear guard, led by Voldemort. Now trapped between two armies, Grindelwald's forces turned from the castle and charged Voldemort's advancing lines. Against all odds, Grindelwald's army broke through Voldemort's advance and retreated into the forest.

"They'll Disapparate as soon as they've cleared the school grounds." Catherine said, collapsing on the ground next to Ron and Luna, both of whom looked as tired as she felt. Harry came hurrying up to them, Ginny on his heals.

"Are they prepared?" Harry asked Catherine. She nodded.

"If they're needed," She said quietly.

"Good, if Voldemort's got something planned, now is his…." Catherine's eyes widened. Harry, Ron, Luna, and Ginny all turned to see what she was looking at. A single giant, massive club in hand, towered over them. Its thundering footsteps shook the ground as it approached the castle. A high, cold laugh sounded behind them.

"I must confess that I am greatly disappointed." said Voldemort. "I had thought that you would at least have contemplated my treachery. It's like you don't know me at all." Harry simply shrugged.

"Oh, we you _perfectly_." Magical creatures began appearing everywhere on the grounds. A herd of centaurs charged into the field, peppering the enemy with arrows. Whitelighters orbed entire legions of wizards onto the school grounds. Voldemort cursed and vanished. Wizards on broomsticks dropped explosive casks onto the ground. The black lake rippled. A spiraling maelstrom appeared, and a fleet of large, dark ships surfaced. The vessels, sent by Durmstrang Institute, opened fire. The ship's cannons bombarded Voldemort's forces as they attempted to regroup. As most of the Order surrounded Voldemort's army, Harry and Catherine raced across the ground for the castle doors.

"Are you sure about this?" Harry asked as they burst into the ruined Great Hall.

"Yes!" Catherine shouted, lighting a fire beneath a cauldron and began dumping ingredients into it. "Look, without the Power of Three, the Source vanquishing spell isn't going to work. Mum made a potion that we used to escape from a group of Death Eaters earlier. I think I might be able to increase its explosive yield enough to vanquish Voldemort and the Source."

"But you don't _know _that you can." Harry countered.

"No, I don't _know_," Catherine retorted. "But if it doesn't work, we're dead. We're one witch short for the vanquishing spell and we can't risk transferring Mum's powers to someone else, because wherever she is, she's going to need them. Now, the faster you stop asking me questions, the faster I'll finish this potion!"

Outside, the battle raged on. Despite the Order's advantage in numbers, the Order was tired, having battled Grindelwald for hours. Voldemort's forces, however, were fresh and fit for battle. Even so, Harry thought, as Catherine corked five potion bottles and handed one to him, if you cut off the head of the snake, the body will die. He examined the jet black liquid inside the vial. Catherine took one last look around the Great Hall. She had a sad expression on her face, almost as though she would never see it again.

Harry reached out and took her hand. She turned and looked at him. In that moment, Harry forgot she was his daughter. She was just that pretty girl he'd fallen in love with all those years ago. The girl that had given her life to save his in that very room.

"It's odd, isn't it?" Catherine said, correctly reading the look on his face. "How things change?"

"Yeah… it is." Harry muttered.

"Have you ever… Have you ever thought about what would have happened if you and I had never broken up? If I hadn't died and lost the baby… If I hadn't flown off the handle when I saw you kissing Ginny…?"

"Every day." Harry said quietly. "Catherine, I…. I really did love you… You know that, right?" Catherine nodded.

"Yeah," she said, wiping a tear from her eye. "Yeah, I… I know. Harry, I…" Harry reached up and cupped her cheek in his hand. He gently wiped another tear off her cheek.

"We've got to go…" Catherine nodded again.

"Right," she said. She pocketed three of the potion vials and gripped the last one tightly in her hand. "Let's go." Harry took her hand and led her out into the Entrance Hall. It was deserted.

"C'mon," Harry said, edging out into the Hall and toward the oak front doors. Catherine kept a firm grip on his hand as they walked. Just as they reached the doors, a fireball hit Catherine squarely in the back. She flew across the room and slammed into one of the large hourglasses that indicated the House points. Voldemort descended the Marble Staircase, smiling darkly.

"Harry, Harry, Harry…" He chuckled softly. "Your time is up. You and the Order of the Phoenix have irked me for the last time." Voldemort drew his wand. Harry followed suit. Voldemort's gaze fell on the potion in Harry's hand.

"A potion?" He asked. "What? Don't I merit the Power of Three? I'm hurt. But then, your daughter is dying on the floor over there, and her mother…. Well, I had hoped to kill her myself, but I suppose my old associate, Grindelwald, will have that wonderful pleasure."

"Why did you have to do this?" Harry asked, ignoring Voldemort's previous words. "All of this… everything… all this death and pain is because of you. And what have you gained? Nothing! Why?" Voldemort laughed.

"My reasons are of no concern to you," Voldemort raised his wand. Harry tossed his potion vial, but Voldemort blasted it out of the air.

"Fool…" he muttered.

"But who is the more foolish," Catherine said weakly, from the floor. "The fool? Or the fool who turns their back on the enemy before killing them?" Voldemort turned around. Catherine stood inches from him. She seemed to be using every ounce of strength she had to remain standing. In a flash, Voldemort had drawn his sword. Harry hit Voldemort with a bolt of lightening from his fingertips, but it had no effect.

Voldemort plunged the sword through Catherine's chest. She gasped and fell to the ground. The potion vial slipped from her grasp and shattered at Voldemort's feet. Voldemort looked from the potion on the ground, to Catherine, whose blood was beginning to pool around her, to Harry, who slowly lowered his wand. Voldemort laughed softly.

"Well," he said, in an offhand sort of way. "That's that, I suppose." The shattered potion ignited and exploded. The blast knocked Harry off his feet. Catherine was engulfed in the powerful detonation. Harry had barely landed on his back before he was already upright again. He ran to Catherine's side, to find her still alive. He knelt beside her and scooped her carefully into his arms.

"Kat…" he said softly.

"Haven't we been in a situation like this before?" she asked weakly. Harry looked her over. She was covered in burns. The sword wound in her chest still bled freely and Harry could only guess what the fireball had done.

"You died for me last time," Harry told her. "Not again." He stood, held both hands out over her, and began to heal her. For a moment, Harry thought it wasn't working, but then the burns began to disappear. The sword wound vanished and her eyes fluttered open. She looked up at him. Harry held out his hand and Catherine took it. He pulled her to her feet and gave her a soft smile.

"I'm not losing you again." He said firmly. Catherine grinned.

"Thanks." she told him. "C'mon, we need to go. With Voldemort gone, his army will be diminished, but the Source is still out there. We need to go find him." Harry nodded.

"I think I might know where we can find him." Harry gripped Catherine's hand once again, and together, they orbed out.


	11. The Calm Before the Storm

-.-

**Chapter 11**

**The Calm Before The Storm**

-.-

Harry and Catherine reformed in the basement of the Halliwell manor.

"What are we doi…" Harry hurriedly placed his hand over Catherine's mouth.

"Shh," He said as he released her.

"Why are we here?" she demanded, when she had use of her mouth once again.

"Because, I think the Source may well be here." Harry explained.

"Why would he come here?" Catherine asked, looking around the dark basement. "The Nexus?"

"The sisters vanquished the Nexus three years ago. Even so, the manor is powerfully magical in its own right. Besides, the Source is likely curious as to whether or not the sisters are truly dead. I wouldn't doubt that he would be investigating the manor for clues." Gesturing for her to be silent, he led her up the rickety staircase and into the kitchen. As they moved into the dining room, Harry's suspicions were confirmed. A leather-clad demon stood at the foot of the staircase. Luckily, he hadn't noticed them. Harry pulled Catherine into the shadows and waited. A moment later, four more demons appeared, followed by a dark, black robed figure that could only be the Source.

"Wait," Harry whispered in Catherine's ear, just as she made to move out into the open. "We need a plan."

"But he's right there. They don't even know we're here, we can…"

"Kat, you almost died today. Do you really want to repeat the experience?"

"Of course not, but…"

"Then, let's think this through."

-.-

Along a dark, torch-lit corridor, a cell door swung open. Two Death Eaters strode out, laughing darkly. Inside the cell, Hermione scooped herself off the floor, discovered there was no better place to position herself, and lay herself back down again. She looked up at the Death Eaters as they sealed the door.

"Don't fight so hard next time, darling." One of the masked Death Eater's said. "It might not hurt so badly." Still laughing along with his friend, the Death Eaters left Hermione alone in the dark cell. Hermione struggled into a sitting position and tilted her head to see into the cell on her left. It was empty. The one on her right, however, was not. A young, pink haired woman leaned against the wooden bars. Hermione crawled across the cell and peered at the woman through the bars. She slowly reached through the bars and grasped the woman's hand. She turned and stared at Hermione, her eyes wide.

"_Tonks_?" Hermione said in a tone that indicated she could hardly believe what she was seeing.

"Hermione…" Tonks said, her voice weak. "How…. How did they…?"

"Tonks, I thought you were dead." Hermione whispered. "I haven't seen you since… since my seventh year at Hogwarts. You've been gone _seven _years."

"Sev… seven years? But I thought… The war…"

"We haven't won yet," Hermione told her. "But we haven't lost either."

"You've got to get out of here." Tonks said suddenly. "They… they'll never let you go… they'll never let you _die_, they'll…" She lost consciousness. Hermione slumped back against the wall, not releasing Tonks' hand.

"There's still hope." Hermione whispered. "There's always hope…"

-.-

"Are you ready?"

"Do I have to be?"

"_Catherin!._"

"Fine… Catherine leapt from their handing place. The assortment of demons rounded on her. A purple-blue energy shield formed around her. The demons threw fireballs, which bounced off the shield and hit the demons who had thrown them. Slowly, Catherine lowered the shield. There was no sign of the Source. Harry emerged from the shadowy corner where they had been hiding and looked around.

"He's still in the house." Harry said firmly

"How do you know?" Catherine asked.

"Just a feeling… C'mon, he'll be upstairs." Harry turned to lead Catherine upstairs. As he did so, a column of fire erupted on the landing. The Source appeared from it.

"Ah, Ms. Potter." The Source said, ignoring Harry completely. "I've heard many things about you from Voldemort and Grindelwald. You are so like your mother, it would seem. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"_Charmed_," Catherine said darkly.

"Witty, as always." The Source said. "Excellent, excellent. And Harry, I trust you are well."

"Well enough," said Harry grimly. "Too bad you aren't." Ginny Apparated behind the Source with a loud crack. She dropped one of the last three potions Catherine had made at the Source's feet and vanished. Catherine's shield formed a protective bubble around herself and Harry. The potion exploded. Fire and heat washed over them, scorching the walls and blackening the carpet. When the fire faded, the Source was gone. The walls behind where he had stood were cracked, and the railing along the staircase had been incinerated. As Catherine lowered the shield, Ginny reappeared, bringing Ron, Luna, Phoebe, Piper, and Paige along with her.

"What now?" Phoebe asked, watching as Ron repaired the room with a wave of his wand.

"We find Hermione." Harry said. "We'll need the Power of Three to vanquish Grindelwald… unless that potion of yours can do the job." He said the Catherine. She shook her head.

"No, not unless I increase its yield again, but…"

"'But what?" Piper asked.

"It would be incredibly unstable. Not to mention the blast would consume whoever used it."

"Well… what if we only increased it a little bit?" Phoebe suggested. Catherine sighed.

"You don't understand. The potion we have now is barely usable. If we were to make it any more powerful, it would be beyond anything we could control. When I said unstable, I meant it. We wouldn't even be able to Disapparate like Ginny did after she used that last potion. If you shook the vial even slightly, it would explode."

"Okay, so we find Hermione." said Piper. "Just how do we do that?"

"Finding her is the easy part." Catherine said. "There's only one prison in the Dark Forest the Order hasn't destroyed. She'll have to be there. Grindelwald will be too busy trying to rally what's left of his forces to bother with her too much, and he won't risk keeping a Charmed One in his headquarters… he knows our reputation. The problem will be getting her out. Grindelwald's not going to let us walk right in and take her. She'll be heavily guarded, not to mention she'll probably be injured. That'll make it harder to get her out."

"Before we talk about getting out," Phoebe said. "How do we get _in_?"

"Through the front door." Catherine said. "We can't orb in, or Apparate. The building will be protected against such things. We'll have to fight our way in."

"Against all the demons and Death Eaters guarding the place?" Luna said. "You're crazy."

"I don't doubt it." Catherine said. "The point is Grindelwald's going to need as much of his forces as he can muster. He'll have her cell guarded, but the prison itself should be relatively undefended."

"We should get back to Hogwarts." Harry said standing up from where he had been investigating the black burn where the Source had stood, and speaking for the first time since the conversation began. "We're exposed here, not to mention we'll need the Book of Shadows." Ginny, Luna, and Ron disappeared with a series of loud cracks. Harry took Piper's hand, and Catherine gripped Paige and Phoebe's. Together, they dissolved into blue-white lights, and then disappeared altogether.

-.-

Hermione awoke with a start. Her cell door opened and she looked up to see who had entered.

"Hello, my dear." Daniel said, pushing the door closed. Hermione closed her eyes and said nothing. Daniel sighed. "Don't be that way."

"What way?" Hermione exclaimed, her anger giving her an unexpected burst of energy.

"I'm just here to talk."

"What? Just like you were just at Hogwarts to kidnap me?"

"Listen, that was a mistake, I know that now." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"And you couldn't have figured that out _before _you kidnapped me?" she demanded.

"No… I went to see Danielle. She… she didn't recognize me, but I knew her the moment I saw her. She looks just like you. And then… then I started thinking about Miley."

"Miley?" Hermione said, perplexed. "Who the hell is Miley?"

"Your daughter," Daniel said quietly. "And Danielle's twin sister." Hermione's jaw dropped.

"That's not possible…"

"It's true. I hid her from you. I used spells and potions to conceal her from you. I even made you forget that you had given birth to twins. I knew that you would have to know about one of them, obviously. I knew that your influence, being the good witch that you are, would draw her away from evil. I had hoped that the other would stay on the side of evil. Miley's instructors, however, tell me that she is… questioning her allegiance… as is Danielle. Danielle wants to meet you, and Miley is wondering why her mother abandoned her."

"Where are they?" Hermione asked, her voice tight.

"At separate demonic schools." Daniel said. "Neither of them have any idea the other exists. Anyway, that's not the point. I need to get you out of here."

"Excuse me?"

"They need you. Danielle and Miley, they need you. Grindelwald is going to lose the war, we all can sense it. On some level, I think even he knows it. If Grindelwald is vanquished, the Underworld will be thrown into chaos. Danielle and Miley could easily be killed. I can't protect them, but _you _can. And I'd rather see them in the hands of good magic, than see them killed."

"Y… you're serious, aren't you?" Hermione asked. Her voice shook. She could hardly believe her ears. Daniel Granger was actually showing true concern for his children… concern he had never once shown for her.

"Yes, I am." Daniel said firmly. "Listen, I can't just let you go. I'll have to come up with something. I will attempt to keep the Death Eaters from getting in here." He turned to leave.

"Um… Dad?" Hermione said, cautiously. He stopped and turned to look at her. "Thanks. Maybe there's hope for you yet." He shook his head and closed her cell door. Hermione moved to the wooden bars, reached through them, and took his hand. Daniel couldn't seem to think of anything to say. He simply nodded to Hermione and walked away. Hermione watched him go, feeling only slightly happier than she had before he had come.

-.-

The sky outside the prison darkened to a grayish black as clouds gathered overhead. Harry, Catherine, and the others hid in the trees, waiting.

"Are you ready?" Harry asked Catherine.

"No, but do I have a choice?"

"I wish you did, Kat." Catherine gripped Harry's hand tightly.

"Listen," she said softly. "I've got this feeling, like we may never see each other again. And if that's true, I need to know one thing. I need to make sure I've gotten over you." Without another word, she leaned in and kissed him. Harry hesitated for a moment, too shocked to move. Soon enough, he came to his senses and pulled away.

"Kat…?" He said uncertainly.

"Oh… sorry. I just… I needed to know, and now I do." Catherine's gaze shifted up onto the towering, black prison. Harry could see the building reflected in her hazel eyes.

"Better get going." Catherine said, releasing Harry's hand. As she did so, the wind, which had been blowing fiercely, ceased.

"The calm before the storm…" Harry said, softly.

"Maybe," Catherine responded, her voice sounded very tired. She turned to look at him once again.

"I'll find her." She assured him. "I promise." Harry nodded. He wanted to say something more. He wanted to tell her how proud he was of her, to thank her for returning to the past, which had brought Harry and Hermione together. He longed to explain how much their relationship had once meant to him, and how much he loved her. Unfortunately, he could not form these feelings into words, and instead, he squeezed her hand and said,

"Good luck, Kat." She smiled slightly and nodded.

"Thanks. Be careful."

"Yeah, you too," Catherine turned away from Harry, waved to Ron, Ginny, Luna, Phoebe, Paige, and Piper, all of whom huddled quietly under a tree, and edged slowly toward the dark prison.


	12. The Storm

-.-

**Chapter 12**

**The Storm**

-.-

Two Death Eaters marched swiftly passed Catherine's shadowy hiding place. She pressed herself tightly against the rocky wall, quietly thanking whatever higher power that might be listening for the blessing of being small. Once certain the Death Eaters were gone, Catherine edged out of the tiny crack in the wall where she hid, and hurried onward. Barely halfway along the corridor a pair of demons flamed into her path. Catherine and the demons gazed at each other for a moment, and then the demons ignited fireballs in their hands. Catherine's eyes widened.

"Oh, _triple shit_."

-.-

"It's been two hours. If she was going to come back, she would have." Harry glared down at Phoebe.

"She's not dead," Harry said so firmly that he seemed to think that simply stating it would make it so.

"Look, I didn't say she was," Phoebe replied shortly. "She could have been captured. All I'm saying is if she could have gotten back to us by now, she would have done so." Harry sighed.

"Alright, Pheebs, I'm going in there. Give me half an hour, and only half an hour. If I'm not back by then, you are to assume I've been captured or killed. If that's the case, you're to gather the others and get the hell in there and rescue us."

"Excuse me?"

"I mean it, unless you plan to go vanquish Grindelwald yourself. In which case, feel free to leave us."

"Wait!" Piper shouted, hurrying up to Harry and Phoebe. "We just got a letter from Dumbledore." she said, shoving the yellow parchment under Harry's nose. "He wants us to come back to Hogwarts." Harry read the letter over three times, just to make sure he was seeing properly.

"He _can't _be serious." Harry said.

"He's serious." Piper confirmed, brandishing the letter.

"Yeah, well, he's also a jackass." Harry glanced back at the black prison wall. "Fine, pack up everything. We're leaving… but we'll be back… soon."

-.-

"You'll be okay. The Order won't leave us here."

"They won't leave _you _here. I've been here for years, they don't care."

"_I _care." Tonks shifted slightly in her cell, taking a firmer grip on Hermione's hand.

"Mione, I've…" An explosion cut Tonks' statement short. The sounds of battle echoed through the prison. Soon, silence fell. After several minutes, two demons dragged a limp, dark haired girl into the cell. They deposited her carelessly on the floor and left.

Hermione drew herself away from Tonks and moved to the girl's side.

"_Catherine_?" Hermione asked, stunned. Catherine whimpered and shifted so she could see Hermione. "What are you_ doing _here?"

"Rescuing you, of course," Catherine muttered, sitting up with Hermione's help. Hermione looked casually around the cell.

"Well, you did a _fantastic _job." Catherine gave her a significant look and Hermione chuckled. "Dumbledore decided to send you in alone?"

"He seemed to think that stealth was a better option than brute force." Catherine explained.

"Yes, but this is also the man who decided to ally with Voldemort, neglected to relay information that a certain girl was another certain man's future daughter, and let's not forget that incident involving two fairies, a basket of pears, and a hog's head."

"Oh yeah!" said Catherine with a jolt of remembrance. "I'd forgotten about that… Eww... Anyway, look. Harry and I managed to vanquished Voldemort and the Source, but…"

"Wait. You vanquished Voldemort and the Source without the Power of Three? How?" Catherine smiled.

"With this." Catherine reached into her pocket and withdrew a potion vial. Hermione took one and examined it closely. Hermione shook her head.

"You did _not_…" She said in awe.

"Indeed, I did." Catherine said, clearly proud of herself.

"What is _in _this?" Hermione inquired, uncorking the vial.

"Don't move it around too much." Catherine warned. "It's… unstable. We could blow ourselves up, and that wouldn't help matters. Now, basically, what I did was expand on the potion you made. I upped the amount of Jacklebeet by about ten percent…"

"My god…" Hermione said. "This is truly amazing work."

"Well, you did once tell me that I was better at making potions than you… and twice as good as Dad."

"Yeah, I remember…" Hermione said with a slight smile. "That was so long ago…"

"Life was simpler back then, wasn't it?" Catherine asked.

"Not so much," Hermione said quietly. "Just… different…"

-.-

Harry and the others orbed into the headmaster's office.

"Whatever reason you've got for calling us back had better be pretty damned important!" Harry shouted, marching straight to Dumbledore's desk.

"It is, I assure you." said Dumbledore. "I have news on Grindelwald. Since his defeat out on the grounds, he has withdrawn into the Underworld. Until now, we've been unable to track him. However, it seems he had seen fit to reveal himself. Grindelwald has activated his towers. He is raising them to the surface as we speak. Our spies within Grindelwald's ranks have informed us that instead of using them in their original form, he has modified them to _gather _Dark Energy instead of releasing it."

"Why would he want to do that?" Ron asked as he and the others took seats.

"Because he is weak. His army had been decimated and he cannot hope to stand against the full weight of the world's wielders of good magic without a serious power boost."

"He's using the towers to gather all the magic in the world into himself." Piper said with an expression of sudden understanding. We, I mean to say, my sisters and I dealt with something like this a few years ago."

"And what did you do?" Harry asked.

"Well, if he's using the towers to gather the magic he'll have to… connect himself to them somehow. That's what the demon did anyway, on a much smaller scale, of course. He sucked the powers out of other demons and used them for himself."

"So he'll just have to go around to each of these towers and touch them?" Ginny asked.

"Not exactly." said Phoebe. "It's much more complicated than that. You see, if he touched one of the towers, all that power would go into him at once. Absorbing small amounts of power at once like the demon did is okay, but we're talking incredible amounts of energy. Even Grindelwald could not possibly take that kind of energy overload. He'll have to use some sort of regulator or something to control the flow of power."

"And he'll have to do it quickly," Paige added. "He's not going to have much time."

"Alright," said Dumbledore. "Here is what we are going to do. We are going to find and destroy as many of these towers as we can before Grindelwald can use them. We will send small groups to each tower. As for you all, you'll be assaulting Grindelwald's base of operations."

"Not until Hermione and Catherine get back," said Harry. "We can't vanquish him, its suicide."

"I assure you, when the time is right, you'll know what to do. Now, as I recall, there is a delicious looking ice cream treat in the kitchens that I would like to sample." Without another word, Dumbledore strode from the room, leaving the others staring after him, dumbfounded.

-.-

Night had fallen. A deadly silence had fallen upon the prison. Catherine slept lightly against her mother's side. Tonks sat in the neighboring cell, her eyes darting from dark corner to dark corner. Hermione simply stroked Catherine's hair, watching the stars through the fist-sized window. The silence, however, was broken by the sound of footsteps. Two demons stopped outside Tonks' cell, opened the door, and forced her to her feet.

They began to drag her from the cell. Tonks gripped the bars, pleading with Hermione, and a freshly awoken Catherine, to help her. The demons broke her grip on the bars and took her away, her terrified shouts echoing through the prison. Neither Hermione nor Catherine knew how far they had taken Tonks, but they could still hear her feeble pleadings, which soon turned to screams of agony. Catherine sobbed quietly into Hermione's chest as the demons continued their horrible deeds. Soon enough, Tonks' screams subsided, and the only sound that remained was Catherine's soft whimpering.

"What did they do to her?" Catherine asked, speaking for the first time in hours.

"I could only guess, sweetie." Hermione responded, her eyes not leaving the cold, stone wall outside the cell. "I've seen what they can do to people in here… more to the point, I've _felt _what they can do to people, and…" Hermione broke off. Catherine didn't press the issue. Hours passed in silence. Again, the sound of footsteps shattered the silence. A tall man, shrouded in shadow, paused outside the door. He pushed it open and entered the cell.

"Grindelwald wishes to see you." Daniel said firmly. "Come with me."

-.-

"Well?"

"There's not much," Phoebe said sadly. "We _think _Grindelwald's lair is here." she indicated the spot on the map. "Unfortunately, the only way to know for sure is to go there." Harry shook his head.

"This had to be the worst plan Dumbledore has ever come up with." He sighed. "How many of those towers have been destroyed?"

"Eighty-seven," Paige said. "There's only six remaining, but there's a problem."

"What sort of problem?" Harry inquired.

"It seems Grindelwald managed to get his hands on Hermione's shield potion. I don't know how, but he did. The towers are protected from us. There's no way to get to them."

"Okay, then." said Harry. "We've got to get to Grindelwald before he can use those towers. Are the others ready?"

"Yes," Phoebe confirmed. "We've managed to rally over three hundred witches and wizards to assault Grindelwald's fortress."

"Signal them to start toward Grindelwald's base. We have to move quickly."

-.-

Daniel led Hermione and Catherine through a series of dark corridors.

"We've left the prison far behind." Daniel explained in a hushed voice as they walked. "The prison is connected to the Underworld. These passages lead straight to Grindelwald. In fact, we're here." Daniel indicated a large iron door, which blocked their path. A number of demon guards protected the entrance. Daniel and his companions walked straight past the guards. Daniel opened the door and proceeded through it. Hermione and Catherine followed.

"Why is he being so… nice?" Catherine asked in a hushed whisper.

"Because I believe he's going to help us." Hermione explained.

"Him? Help us? Are you crazy?"

"That's quite possible. Look, I can't explain it, just… trust me."

"I do, it's Daniel I don't tru… What the hell is that?" Daniel had just led them into a large chamber. Power conduits lined the walls and in the very back of the room, a massive machine crackled with electricity. In the very center of the machine was a platform. Grindelwald stood there, his hands pressed into a thick, organic, gelatinous looking substance on either side of the tiny platform. The substance had been placed in separate metallic trays. Wires, cords, and power lines ran from the trays and connected them to two pulsing cylinders the size of a four story building. Clear, glass columns ran from the tops of the cylinders and extended into the ceiling. Swirling black clouds of… something, neither Hermione or Catherine could tell what, was pouring through the glass columns.

Daniel reached the edge of the elevated platform where Grindelwald stood, and knelt.

"Milord," he said. "I have brought the prisoner as you requested." Grindelwald's eyes opened and he stepped down from the platform, his reddish eyes burning into Hermione's.

"Impressed?" he asked. Hermione said nothing. "Well, you should be." Grindelwald continued. "This is my greatest work. My most powerful tool. This, my dear, is the downfall of the Order and Good Magic everywhere." Grindelwald smiled down at Hermione and Catherine and chuckled darkly. "I have won."


	13. A New Power

Chapter 13

A New Power

--------------------

"Well, aren't we getting just a _tad _overconfident?" Catherine asked, a polite look of curiosity on her face. "All this _'I have won.' _business before you _actually _won, seems a bit cocky, don't you think?" Grindelwald smiled.

"Ah, yes. You're the one who always has something sarcastic to say, aren't you?" Grindelwald commented, looking her over. Catherine shrugged.

"It's a bad habit." Grindelwald nodded.

"Indeed. People with less patience than myself would have killed you already." Catherine leaned toward Hermione.

"Did you hear that?" she asked. "He thinks he's a person."

"Witty, my dear." said Grindelwald. "Now, as much as I am enjoying this battle of wits…"

"It's a little one-sided though, this battle of wits, isn't it?" Catherine asked Hermione. Grindelwald ignored her.

"We have business to attend to."

"What sort of business?" Hermione inquired.

"Firstly," began Grindelwald. "My demons managed to acquire a sample of your shield potion before the tower it rested in was destroyed. I've put it to good use protecting my Dark Energy Siphon towers. However, I am running a tad low and I understand a bit of blood is needed to make more. That can, of course, wait until you are both dead." Grindelwald hurled a fireball at them. Hermione and Catherine retreated behind one of the many stone pillars that filled the room.

"_What _were you trying to do back there?" Hermione asked as Catherine peaked carefully around the pillar, trying to spot Grindelwald.

"I was trying to piss him off enough so that he would make a mistake…. It didn't work. I don't know what we do now, but like you said back at Hogwarts, we have hope, right?"

"Yes, we do, but right now, we need a plan."

"And I suppose you want _me _to come up with it?" Catherine said. "_Everyone _thinks _I'm _the one with the plans…"

"Kat, I wasn't saying…"

"Wait," Catherine interrupted. "I think I might have an idea."

"And you wonder why people think you'll have a plan."

"Oh, shut up and listen." Catherine muttered. "Our Charmed powers won't work well here, right? Well, aren't you half demon in this time?"

"Yeah, but I have no idea how to use those power. I…"

"Just get angry." Catherine said. "Think of the war, Grindelwald, whatever." Hermione closed her eyes reluctantly and a moment later, a sizzling fireball formed in her hand. Catherine smiled widely.

"I told you you could do it." Catherine reached into her pocket and retrieved one of the remaining two potions. "You've still got the other?" she asked. Hermione nodded.

"Are you ready?" Hermione asked. Catherine responded by tightening her grip on the vial. Hermione moved out of their cover and began tossing fireballs in Grindelwald's direction. Perhaps it was because he had not been expecting such an incredible display of power, because he seemed momentarily stunned. The first three fireballs hit him around the face and neck before he began returning fire. One of the fireballs caught Catherine squarely in the chest. She was blasted off her feet and landed hard on the rocky floor, ten feet away. Hermione released several more fireballs before rushing to Catherine's side.

"Mum…?" Catherine said weakly. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what, sweetie?" Hermione asked as fireballs exploded over their heads.

"It's no use…" Catherine said, coughing and gesturing at Hermione's fruitless efforts to heal her. "Our powers are too weak down here."

"You are _not _going to die." Hermione said firmly.

"Yes, I am." was Catherine's response.

"No, you're not. I'm your mother and I say so." Catherine reached up an cupped her mother's cheek with a trembling hand.

"You've always protected me. Even when…. you didn't know I was your daughter, you still protected me. I love you so much, Mum… and I'm sorry to leave you here alone, but I…" The last of Catherine's strength left her. Her hand fell to the ground and the potion vial she held in her other hand slipped from her grasp. Despite knowing where she was, despite knowing that death was staying only feet from her, her grief overtook her. She sobbed uncontrollably, squeezing Catherine's hand and smoothing her hair. Catherine's body then faded away, and Hermione sobbed harder than ever. Grindelwald stepped up to her, forming a fireball in his hand. He raised it high over his head, but before he could end Hermione's life, an energy ball flew out of nowhere and sent Grindelwald flying away from Hermione and into the stone wall. Daniel knelt beside Hermione, gently shaking her.

"Hermione, listen to me. It's not to late to save her. You can still escape and vanquish Grindelwald. Catherine can still be born. Pull yourself together. I'll try and hold Grindelwald off as long as I can. Get out of here, get back to the Order."

"Y.. you can't vanquish him." Hermione whispered. "He'll kill you."

"I know that." Daniel said. "I was never a father to you, Hermione. Now, I wish I had been. I hurt you and I am truly sorry. But I will not let him kill you." Grindelwald was getting to his feet, a fireball burning in his hand.

"Go!" Daniel told her. "Now, and don't look back." Hermione hesitated only a moment.

"I… um… I love you, Dad." she whispered. "Thank you." Daniel nodded curtly and turned away. Hermione ran. She had no idea where she was going, she knew only that she had to put as much distance between herself and Grindelwald as she could. An anguished scream told her that Grindelwald had eliminated yet other opponent, and she ran even faster.

----------------------

The Order had launched its attack. Wizards, witches, and large numbers of magical creatures charged through the Underworld. Grindelwald's army, having been all but destroyed, could not hope to put up much of a fight. Even so, the Order found itself hard pressed to maintain its position.

------------------------

Hermione ran onward, hurtling around corners, barely noticing where she was going. As she rounded yet another corner, she found herself face to face with Draco Malfoy.

"My, my." said Malfoy. "Aren't we in a rush?" Hermione launched a fireball at him, but in her anger, missed. "And here I thought you never missed."

"Malfoy, now is not the time to test me." An explosion rocked the passage. The battles in the Underworld were getting closer.

"Why? Should I be scared?" Whether he should be scared or not, Draco never found out. Another explosion shook the ground. The rocky floor cracked and began to fall away, into a flowing river of lava, hundreds of feet below. The rock beneath Draco's feet crumbled away and he fell. As he fell, he lunged for Hermione's hand. He caught it, pulling her down with him. Using all the strength she could muster, Hermione found a grip on the edge of the chasm with her other hand, but she was slipping.

"You can't hold us both up!" Draco shouted from below. "You know you can't."

"Yes, I do know. And if you want to live, I need you to trust me." Hermione tilted her head so she should see Draco. He looked up at her.

"Do you trust me?" she asked. Slowly, he nodded. Without any warning, Hermione wrenched her hand free of Draco's and he fell… for a fraction of a second. Using her now free hand, she froze Draco mid-fall, pulled herself back up onto solid ground, and lifted Draco up as well with a wave of her hand. She unfroze him and backed away slightly, not sure yet if he was going to attack.

"Uh…" he said after a moment of silence. "thanks."

"Don't thank me." Hermione said. "Enough people have died today. There's only a need for _one _more death."

"Look," he said. "I… I'm sorry for everything I've done. You… you stood up for me, believed in me when no one else did… and I repaid you by betraying your trust after you had allowed me into your home, and…"

"Come back with me." Hermione said suddenly.

"What?"

"Come back to the Order with me." Hermione said again. "You still have a chance, Draco. If I didn't think you did I'd have let you die back there."

"Thank you," Draco said, looking anxious. "We can't stay here, we've got to go. I think I saw a few Order members this way." Hermione motioned for Draco to lead the way, and they set off down the passage in silence.

------------------------

The Order had been almost completely stonewalled in its efforts to advance. The demons knew the Underworld much better than the Order and could move about much more quickly. Harry pressed forward alone, desperately searching for Grindelwald, and hoping for some sign of Hermione and Catherine. He moved silently through the dark tunnels, encountering no one. After about half an hour, he stumbled across a massive chamber. The walls were lined with power conduits, and a large machine rested in the center. Other than the machinery, however, the room appeared empty. Harry slowly crept forward. Lying on the ground ahead, he spotted a single potion vial. He moved forward and picked it up. It was clearly one of Catherine's potions, which meant she had been here. But where was she now? And was Hermione with her? Suddenly, Harry was thrown into a premonition. He saw everything. He watched as Grindelwald murdered Catherine, saw Daniel sacrifice himself so Hermione could escape. The vision changed. Hermione was standing in one of the many dark tunnels in the Underworld. A tall demon whose face Harry could not see stood in front of them. Before Harry could determine more, a cold voice pulled him from his vision.

"I'm pleased you're here, Harry." Grindelwald said, smiling grimly. "Oh, I have waited many years for this moment. The Power of Three is finally dead and I will have the pleasure of killing yet another Charmed One.

---------------------

"Yes, yes… I think it's this way. Sorry, I haven't spent much time down here." Draco continued to lead Hermione down the twisting tunnels, hoping for a glimpse of the Order. As they walked, Draco looked to Hermione and said,

"It's not going to be easy getting to Grindelwald. What were you planning on doing?"

"I have no idea." Hermione said. "But the Order _must _have some sort of plan to vanquish him if they're attacking down here." Hermione paused, then added, thinking back to what Catherine had said. "I least I hope they do.. And sometimes hope is all anyone really needs."

"Well, maybe so…" Draco broke off. A column of fire erupted in the center of their tunnel. Zankou stepped forward, fireball in hand. Before either of them could move, Zankou had hit Hermione with the fireball and rounded on Malfoy. Malfoy watched, dumbstruck, as Hermione fell to the ground. He looked up at Zankou.

"You've annoyed me too many times, Draco." Zankou said, forming another fireball. "It is time you finally left this world." Zankou raised his arm to throw the fireball, but was interrupted by Hermione speaking from her position on the floor.

"That's not very nice…" she said, her voice shook. With every ounce of her fading strength, she tossed the potion vial Catherine had given her and Zankou's feet. The blast consumed Zankou and scorched the walls and ceiling. The explosion tore large chunks of rock from the tunnel walls. When the smoke clear, there was no trace of Zankou. Draco turned to Hermione and knelt beside her.

"Listen, Draco…" Hermione whispered. "I… I need you to find Harry and tell him something for me."

"No. I'll take you back to Hogwarts. Someone there can…"

"There's no time, I…" Phoebe darted around the corner. She quickly took in the scene, and seemed to understand exactly what had happened. She, too, hurried to Hermione's side.

"Phoebe…" Hermione said with a tone that clearly indicated she couldn't be happier to see her. Draco moved away, checking the tunnel for approaching demons. "Phoebe, I was going to have Draco do this, but I…I want you to do it."

"Anything." Phoebe said.

"Good," said Hermione, her hand gripping Phoebe's. "I need you to find Harry. Find him and tell him that I think I may know a way to vanquish Grindelwald without the Power of Three…."

"Mione, we just need to get you back to the Order. Someone there can heal you and we'll have the Power of Three, just…"

"No, Phoebe," Hermione said, her voice growing fainter. "Phoebe… Catherine's dead. Grindelwald killed her. Even if you _could _get us back, it wouldn't matter. I need you to listen. Grindelwald was gathering Dark Energy in his lair. An explosion on a large scale should react badly with the exposed Dark Energy. I think the last potion Catherine made should be enough. It's in the chamber with Grindelwald. Harry should be able to find it…" Hermione took a deep breath. "There's… one more thing. Phoebe, I know on some level, you truly loved Harry… you still do. I want you to know that it's okay… and you have my blessing." Phoebe's jaw dropped.

"Hermione, no…"

"Don't argue with me, Phoebe…" Hermione pressed, she was trembling terribly and her breathing was erratic.

"Phoebe, when this is over… I want you to find Danielle and Miley. Take care of them for me. They don't have anyone else… Th… they need…" Hermione's eyes fluttered and slid closed. She let out a long breath and became still. Phoebe didn't cry, she _couldn't _let her grief overwhelm her. She had to make Hermione and Catherine's deaths mean something. She stood and turned to Draco.

"Listen," she said. "I don't know what you're here for, and I don't care. I need your help. There's an Order camp down that passage." She pointed in the direction she had come from. "Get over there and tell them what has happened. I'm going to find Harry." Draco nodded.

"Phoebe…" Draco said. She pulled her gaze from Hermione's limp form and looked up at him. "There's still hope for us. Hermione told me that. She _taught _me that." Without another word, Draco turned and raced off toward the Order encampment. Phoebe turned and hurried off in the other direction, her mind racing. She silently swore to find Danielle and whoever Miley was, and honor her friend's last wish, no matter the cost.


	14. Endgame

Chapter 14

Endgame

-------------------

Harry pressed himself against one of the many stone pillars as Grindelwald strode boldly around the room, searching for him and shouting various threats and curses. As Grindelwald neared his hiding place, he leapt forward and sent hundreds of watts of pure electricity coursing into Grindelwald. The dark wizard bellowed a curse and disappeared with a loud crack. Harry fell back against the pillar. The battle between the two had been waging for what felt like hours, though in reality they had only been fighting for twenty minutes. Harry had hurt Grindelwald badly when one of the pillars had been cracked by Harry's lightening and had fallen on him. Grindelwald, however, had returned to his machine, siphoned more Dark Energy, and used it to heal himself. Each time he absorbed the energy, Harry could swear he became more powerful. Harry chanced a quick glance around the pillar. Grindelwald was nowhere to be seen.

"Harry!" Phoebe exclaimed in a hushed whisper. "Thank God I found you. You…"

"Phoebe, you can't be here now." Harry told her.

"I couldn't leave you to face him alone." Phoebe explained. "Hermione told me she might know how to vanquish Grindelwald. She said she left a potion vial in this room…"

"I found it." Harry muttered, checking once again for a sighting of Grindelwald. "And it gave me a premonition…" Phoebe bowed her head.

"I'm sorry…"

"I can't worry myself about it now. This is too important… Where's Hermione?" Phoebe lowered her gaze to the floor.

"Harry, Hermione… she… Zankou killed her. That's when she told me how to vanquish Grindelwald." The news of Hermione's death didn't even seem to phase Harry, though Phoebe knew it was killing him.

"What did she tell you?" Harry inquired in a quiet voice.

"She said that the potion Catherine made might not react well if it exploded near the Dark Energy Grindelwald is gathering. She said the resulting explosion should be enough to vanquish him." Harry turned from Phoebe and examined the machinery around them. His eyes lingered on the two building-sized structures on either side of the main platform where Grindelwald collected the Dark Energy.

"What do you reckon those do?" Harry asked Phoebe, indicated the large cylinders.

"Well, they look like they store the Energy until Grindelwald needs it, but…"

"Good, that's what I was hoping. I've got an idea, but it might not work. You need to get back to the Order, tell them to get out of the Underworld and back to Hogwarts. If the explosion will be as big as Hermione thought, I don't want any of you down here."

"But what about you?!" Phoebe demanded. "You won't be able to orb out in time." Harry nodded.

"I know… but that's okay. I think, deep down, I always knew it would end like this."

"Then I'm staying with you." Phoebe said, defiantly.

"No, you're not." Harry told her. "I need you to go back to the Order."

"But, Harry…"

"Order of the Phoenix!" Harry said, waving his hand toward Phoebe. She orbed away.

----------------

Phoebe reformed in the Order's main camp. It was clear that, in her absence, the camp had been attacked. Small fires burned everywhere, and each of the camp's defenders looked a little worse for wear. Ron sat near the camp's only entrance. He looked exhausted, but his eyes were alert and focused. Luna and Ginny sat together, further into the camp. Luna was nursing a large burn on her left forearm, and Ginny was filling potion vials with thick, yellowish gel from a cauldron. Piper sat with them, holding her face in her hands. Draco had apparently not made it back yet.

"What happened?" Phoebe asked quietly and motioning at Piper.

"Paige… and two dozen others in the last attack." Luna responded in a monotonous tone.

"God…" Phoebe whispered, sitting down next to Piper and wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Did you find Harry?" Ginny asked, not looking up from her work.

"Yeah… I did."

"And?" Ginny pressed.

"And I told him what Hermione told me about vanquishing Grindelwald. He's battling him now…."

"You saw Hermione?" Luna asked. "Where is she?" Phoebe hesitated a moment before answering.

"She's dead…." Phoebe said, her eyes sliding closed. "along with Catherine."

"So… what's Harry going to do?" Ginny inquired, trying not to think about Hermione and Catherine.

"I… I don't really know. All he said was that he had a plan and that we needed to leave the Underworld."

"Why?" Draco asked, hurrying over to them.

"Apparently whatever he's going to do it going to cause one hell of an explosion. He doesn't want us down here when he tries whatever he's going to try."

"Let's pack it up, then." said Ron, walking over. "If I know Harry, we _don't _want to be here much longer."

---------------

"Come out, come out, Potter! Come out and play!" Grindelwald taunted. Harry ignored him. He remained hidden behind yet another pillar. He'd been doing a bit of a dance with Grindelwald over the past half hour, trying to get to the rightmost building-size cylinder. For his plan to work, everything had to be timed expertly. Even the slightest mistake would be disastrous. Grindelwald turned his back on Harry's location. Harry stood and bolted toward the cylinder, not pausing to look back. He slid to a halt barely ten feet from the cylinder. He gripped his wand tightly and sent a jet of green light spiraling toward Grindelwald. Grindelwald turned, deflecting the curse lazily with a wave of his hand. Harry ducked down behind a large piece of machinery and dug into his pocket for one of the seven potions he'd brought along. Making sure not to choose Catherine's potion, he took a vial filled with red liquid. Without looking, he shot another spell across the room at Grindelwald and rolled the vial into a position between himself and Grindelwald. Perfect. Harry took another potion vial and hurled it straight at Grindelwald, who had started to advance on Harry's position. The dark wizard blasted it out of the air, but even so, it filled the room with thick black smoke. Grindelwald banished it with his wand, but once the offending substance was gone, Harry was nowhere to be found.

----------------

****

GREAT HALL, HOGWARTS CASTLE.

"Anything?"

"No, Ron… nothing."

"Damn. We need to go back."

"We can't," Phoebe said. "Harry told me to…"

"Phoebe, if Harry failed to vanquish Grindelwald, then it's our job to try to do it ourselves." Ron told her.

"When just need to give him more time…"

"_Phoebe_," Ron said in an exasperated voice. "just guarding that infernal camp exhausted us. Harry's been fighting Grindelwald for over two hours. What are the chances he's still fighting?"

"I know… please, just give him a little more time. If _anyone _can do this, it's Harry."

----------------

Harry sat atop the rightmost storage cylinder. The smoke potion had distracted Grindelwald just long enough for him to get into position, and get some rest. The battle had completely exhausted him. He was starving, dehydrated, and more tired than he had ever been in his life. Grindelwald continued to prowl the chamber in the area Harry had last been. He had passed the potion Harry had left six times in the last half hour and hadn't spotted it, for which Harry was thankful. His plan required that potion to remain intact. When developing his plan, he had continually told himself to 'think like Hermione'. He had to admit, his plan was remarkably Hermione-like. He hoped she would be proud. Harry tensed as Grindelwald passed the vial once again. He had barely moved three feet passed it when Harry acted. With a wave of his hand, Harry made the potion shoot into the air and shatter on Grindelwald's robed back. The potion had been one of Hermione's best, and the result easily proved that perhaps only Catherine could mix a better potion, and that would depend on whether Hermione was blindfolded or not. The explosion illuminated Grindelwald for a moment. Fire blazed in all directions, blasting a deep crater into the ground where he stood. Flesh on fire and screaming in agony, Grindelwald withdrew to his machine and began to collect more Dark Energy, hurriedly healing himself. It had worked so completely well that even Harry was surprised. With Grindelwald attempting to heal himself, Harry had what he needed: time. Harry took out another potion and examined the top of the cylinder he stood on. In the very center, a large clear tube extended into the ceiling. What Harry now knew must be the Dark Energy the towers were collecting above ground flowed through it, filling the storage chamber beneath him. He prayed the potion was powerful enough… He backed to the very edge of the cylinder and tossed it. The vial impacted the clear tube, shattering it. Thick, black clouds of Dark Energy spilled out into the chamber. Harry orbed from the first cylinder to the second and repeated the process, causing even more of the Dark Energy to flow out of the storage chambers. Harry then orbed down to the floor, right in from of Grindelwald. The dark wizard smiled.

"Do you mind telling me precisely what it is you are doing?" Grindelwald asked, watching billowing masses of Dark Energy swirl around his body. Harry stared at him.

"Was it worth it? Everything you've done?" Grindelwald chuckled.

"It will be, Harry. You shall see." Grindelwald blasted Harry off his feet with a fireball. He landed hard on his back, twenty feet away. "Fool. Without the Power of Three, you cannot hope to defeat me. You know that I killed your daughter, and though I regret I could not do it myself, I was delighted to hear Ms. Granger met her very timely end." He formed another fireball in his hand. "And now it is your turn." He tossed the fireball… at the same time the last of the potions Catherine had made left Harry's grip. The fireball hit the potion, shattering it. Harry smiled slightly.

"Actually, I think it's both of ours." The potion ignited. The explosion blasted through both Harry and Grindelwald, through the entire chamber, even through the chamber walls, ceiling, and floor. The Dark Energy continued to fuel the explosion. The towers kept gathering more Energy, providing a continuous fuel source. The explosion expanded, burning through tunnel after tunnel in the Underworld. The rocky walls began to cave in upon themselves. Above ground, earthquakes raked the planet. Volcanoes erupted and the explosion beneath the surface caused even the mighty oceans to ripple as the fiery torrent passed under them, causing Tsunamis to form. Fire continued to burn through the entire Underworld. Grindelwald's machinery was instantly destroyed. His towers soon collapsed to the ground. When the fire finally exhausted its fuel and died away, the Underworld was no more. Harry had not only destroyed Grindelwald, but the entire Underworld and all the demons in it, leaving nothing but total silence.

------------------

****

GREAT HALL, HOGWARTS.

As one of the many earthquakes that had shaken the globe subsided, Phoebe stood shakily. She watched as the others climbed to their feet, looking around hesitantly as though certain the ground was no longer moving.

"He did it." Phoebe said, smiling. "Harry did it!"

"Yeah," said Ginny. "I think he did."

"So, is that it? It is over?" Luna inquired, tearing her gaze away from the hundreds of Order members filling the Hall.

"I'd say so." Ron said, sweeping some debris off the Book of Shadows. "It's finally over."

"Yeah, well, we said that last time." Piper muttered.

"And the time before that." Luna added.

"That had to be Grindelwald being vanquished." Draco said. "What else could it have been?"

"I do believe that was intend the end of this terrible conflict." Dumbledore said, striding over to them. "Rest assured, I will be investigating the area where this originated as soon as I can." Dumbledore left them, gathering several Order members, and left.

"What do we do now?" Phoebe asked.

"Go on with our lives, I suppose." said Ron. "What's left of them, anyway."

"But let's not forget the cost…" Phoebe said softly. "Whatever we do, we can't forget the price of victory."


	15. Witch Way Now?

Chapter 15

Witch Way Now?

----------------------

Phoebe sat in the Astronomy Tower, watching the victory celebration on the grounds below. She and the others hadn't been able to bring themselves to join the party. None of them felt like celebrating, having lost four of their number. The door opened and Ginny entered, carrying the Book of Shadows in her arms. She placed it carefully on the only table in the room, around which Ron, Luna, and Piper sat. Ginny gently traced the Triquetra on the cover, not looking up from the Book.

"The Elders said we can return to our time whenever we wish." Ginny said.

"Do we really want to?" Ron asked. "I mean, we lost so much time fighting the war… why not take advantage of this time we have?"

"They would want us to." Phoebe said, standing up from her seat by the edge of the tower on the other side of the room and walking over to them. "Harry, Hermione, Catherine and Paige, I mean. They _died _for this… for us. We should try to be happy… it's what they'd want."

--------------------

"….The death toll on our side has risen to a final total of three thousand eight hundred and seventy nine. I'm sorry to say that I only knew a faction of those fine men and women, but I sincerely wish I had had the honor to meet each and every one of them. I thank them, all of them, for everything they did. All of their deaths truly meant something. And for me… for me, I…" Ginny broke off, unable to say anything more. Phoebe stood from her seat in the front row and stepped onto the stage. She wrapped her arm around her friend's shoulders and whispered something into her ear. Ginny nodded and stepped off stage, taking a seat between Piper and Ron. Phoebe laced her fingers together and looked out over the crowd. Hundreds of faces looked up at her, waiting. Phoebe swallowed deeply.

"You know, I wish I could say I didn't owe anyone anything." Phoebe began in a soft voice. "But that's not true. I owe a lot of things to a lot of people, especially to a certain group of people. They were… really close friends of mine. One of them was my sister, Paige. She… if I talk about her first, you won't hear about any of the others because I'll talk about her for hours, and I'll cry. There is one, though, that I can talk about. A person who wasn't from this time, but came back here to save us all. I'm talking, of course, about Catherine Potter. I don't think I've ever met anyone so brave in my life. She lost both of her parents at such a young age, and then came here… I don't know where she found the courage. I don't think I could have done what she did…. I don't know if any of us standing here today could've done it." Phoebe paused, wiping her eyes. "Harry…. What can you say about Harry? He was… He was a hero. He willingly sacrificed his life so that all of us could live in peace. I like to think that he's… in a better place, facing eternity with the only woman he ever truly loved…. Which brings me to Hermione, the person I'll have as much trouble talking about as I would Paige, but I'll give it a try. I have never, in my thirty two years of life, ever met another person like Hermione. She…" Phoebe found that she suddenly had a large lump in her throat. She didn't bother to wipe the tears from her face, because she knew more would instantly take their place. She clasped her hands behind her back and plowed on. "Hermione was quite possibly the best friend I have ever had in my life. She… she went through so much, suffered through things that none of us can possibly imagine… and yet, it never seemed to phase her. She never complained, she never quit, she never even cried. Never, not once. She inspired me to fight…. She made me want to… want to… keep living. And I don't know what I will do without her. I don't know if I _can _go on without her. Hermione was… she was my sister. Even if not biologically, in my heart, she was my sister… and even though is nightmare has ended, I can't help but think that maybe the cost was too high…. Far too high. However, the fact that we were able to come together to end this war, despite the terrible things some of us here have done, make me…." Phoebe paused, remembering what Draco had said after Hermione had died, the same words that Hermione had told him. "It makes me think that while we don't have much, we do still have hope for the future, and that's what matters. I loved Hermione, in spite of, or perhaps because of, the pain I caused her. I hope… I hope wherever she is tonight, she knows that… and she knows how important she was to me… and how much her strength encouraged me…"

"She knows." a soft voice said. A spiraling wave of blue-white light appeared on the stage beside Phoebe. Hermione stepped out of the light and it vanished. The assembled crowd exploded with applause.

"I know, Phoebe." Hermione told her, her voice soft. Phoebe stood, staring at Hermione, unable to move. Without warning, she burst into tears and pulled Hermione into a tight hug.

"Hermione?" Phoebe whispered.

"Yeah, Pheebs?" Hermione asked.

"Is.. Is this real?" Hermione laughed.

"Yes, it's real."

"But where is Harry? And what about Paige and Kat?" Hermione pulled away from Phoebe.

"Could we have a moment?" she asked the room. There was a collective murmur of assent and Dumbledore took the stage, smiling widely. Hermione motioned to Piper, Luna, Ron, Ginny and Draco. They stood and followed Hermione and Phoebe into a chamber off the Great Hall. The very chamber the Triwizard Champions had been given their instructions for the First Task years before. They all sat down around the fireplace. Everyone looked expectantly to Hermione, save for Phoebe, who was clinging to Hermione's hand and was pressed so closely to her side that she looked as though a Permanent Sticking charm had been applied to them.

"Firstly," Hermione began. "the Elders sent Harry eight years into the future. They seemed to think someone needed to make sure everything was okay and that we really got Grindelwald. Paige is still up there. She's got a few extra charges than Harry and I do, so it'll take her a bit longer to get back."

"What about Catherine?" Ron asked. Hermione's gaze dropped to the floor.

"Kat… went home." Hermione said quietly.

"What the hell does that mean?" Phoebe demanded, still not releasing her friend.

"It means… that when she died, she really died. She's not coming back."

"But… why?" Ginny inquired.

"I don't know. The Elders wouldn't say.

"Are you okay?" Phoebe asked quietly. Hermione shook her head.

"No... but I will be. Kat did what she came back to do. She would be glad to know that. And she'll still be born. We didn't lose her forever."

---------------------

Dumbledore stood at the rim of a crater. The initial blast that had been the result of Grindelwald's vanquish had blown a crater two miles wide and at least half a mile deep into the ground. The old wizard gazed down into the very center, where he knew Grindelwald had stood.

"You did well, old friend." Dumbledore said to himself. "But you did not understand your enemy. That was your failing, my old student. Perhaps the next dark wizard to challenge us will learn from your mistakes, but I doubt it." He smiled. Perhaps it was merely a trick of the light, but for a moment, the smile looked twisted and frightening, but then returned to normal.

"Headmaster." Professor McGonagall called, hurrying over to him and disrupting the kind old wizard's thoughts.

"My apologies, Minerva." said Dumbledore. "Please."

"We have confirmed that the Underworld was completely destroyed. I do not believe demons will _ever _be able to reconstruct it."

"Very good," Dumbledore said distractedly. "_Very_ good…"

---------------------

"Did the Elders say when Harry would be back?" Piper asked, running her finger around the rim of her coffee cup and watching Hermione from across the table. Ron, Luna, Phoebe, Ginny, and Draco all looked around at Hermione.

"No." Hermione responded, closing the Book of Shadows. She looked down the table at Paige, who sat on Phoebe's right side. "Did they say anything to you before you came down?" Paige shook her head.

"He _does _know he's supposed to come back, right?" Paige asked. "I mean, has anyone told them we're not returning to the future? Maybe Harry thinks we're going to meet him."

"I suppose that's… Harry!" Ginny exclaimed. Harry had materialized next to the long House table they sat at.

"Welcome back." Phoebe told him as he took a seat on Hermione's left. He took her hand and smiled.

"It's good to _be _back." Harry said, shifting so Hermione could rest her head on his shoulder.

"I hope you know," Ron said. "you three had us terrified."

"Well, at least we know you guys would actually miss us if we were dead." Paige said, laughing.

"Of course we would!" Piper told her, wrapping her arm around Paige's shoulders.

"And we know that Phoebe loves me." Hermione put in. Phoebe's eyes widened.

"You heard that?" She asked.

"Yes, I did." Hermione said, smirking. "I thought it was sweet."

"Oh," Phoebe said, casting around for a change of subject. "Hermione, I meant to ask, when you were dying, you said that you wanted me to… find Danielle and… and _Miley_. Who is Miley?" Hermione smiled.

"Oh, yeah… I didn't tell you. Miley… is my daughter… and Danielle's twin sister."

"But how…?" Luna began.

"It's a long story… a _very _long story." said Hermione.

"We've got time." said Ron, gazing curiously at Hermione.

"Yes, we do." Hermione said. "So, there's no need to rush. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need this man to tear my clothes off." Hermione pulled Harry to his feet.

"My work is never done." He told the others, vanishing in a swirl of blue-white light. Phoebe watched them go, feeling happier than she had in a long time. Harry, Hermione, and Paige were alive and Grindelwald was gone forever. She smiled across the table at Piper and Paige, who returned the gesture. Hermione had been right, hope was all that had had once, but it truly_ had_ been enough.


	16. The End of the Beginning

A/N: Well, my friends, we have at last reached the final chapter of this series. The end, the closing of a book, the whole enchila… dear Lord, I'm doing it _again_! Maybe it has something to do with story endings… Anyway, as I said, we've reached the end of the last story of the trilogy. Anyway, thanks for reading, and you can interpret the chapter title however you wish… that's all I'm going to say.

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Chapter 16

End of the Beginning

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"Mione?"

"Hmm?"

"You awake?"

"I am now." Hermione muttered, checking her clock. "Ugh… I've got to get up anyway."

"Why?" Harry sighed, pulling Hermione toward him.

"I've got to get to Magic School." Hermione said.

"What? You've been back two days and they're already calling you back to that place?"

"They didn't _call _me back," Hermione told him, climbing out of bed and wrapping a bathrobe around herself. "I volunteered. Leo doesn't want to do it, Paige retired, and I'm not trusting any of the dunderheads the Ministry wanted to send, so I offered to do it myself. Not to mention, I love the Magic School." Harry slumped back against the pillows.

"I've got to go to Hogwarts anyway. Dumbledore and the Elders want a full report on what I saw in the future. Knowing them, it'll take some time."

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"So, there wasn't anything remarkable happening. We were all just living normal lives."

"Good," said one of the Elders, looking pleased. "well, I think we are done here. Good day." He and the other two Elders orbed out, leaving Harry and Dumbledore alone.

"So, you think it really is over, then?" Harry asked, looking across the desk at the headmaster. "Do you think Grindelwald really was the _Mastermind _behind the war?"

"Indeed, Harry, I do. And I must say I am incredibly proud of you. You accomplished as much and far more than I had hoped."

"Thank you, sir."

"I meant to ask, how is Ms. Granger?"

"She's… fine. Why do you ask?"

"I was simply wondering if the spell Grindelwald cast on her to cause her pain had dissipated entirely."

"Yeah, it did." Harry said. "Which is something we're _all _happy about."

"Yes, I am sure you are. Now, Harry. You do realize that all the demons were not vanquished. Some will still remain at large and you must be prepared. They have no place to go, no place to hide… and nothing to lose. They will stop at nothing for revenge. However, I believe you still have a great deal of time before any _real _opposition can be formed." Harry nodded and stood. Dumbledore walked him to the door.

"Sir, if you're right, we'll be waiting. Whatever is going to come will come, and we'll be ready for it when it does."

"Nice, very nice. I'm impressed."

"Well," Ginny said. "ever since I got my Charmed powers back, I've been trying to get better at potion making… speaking of which, how _did _I get these powers again?" Piper sighed.

"I _told _you. When my sisters and I cast the spell to transfer our powers to the most powerful source of good on Earth, our powers went into Harry, Hermione, and Catherine. When Kat died, the spell was still active. So, her powers went into you. It's that simple."

"Nothing's simple, Piper." Ginny said, adding another teaspoon of salt to her potion.

"I thought Hermione was the potions master around here." Piper said, watching Ginny work.

"Well, she is." Ginny admitted. "But with all she's got going on… I mean, running Magic School, watching over charges, searching for her daughters, not to mention dealing with that fiancé of hers…. I just figured I could help out a bit."

"If you're in a helping mood, I could use some." Phoebe said, opening the back door and attempting to heave several bags of groceries into the house at the same time. Piper helped Phoebe lug the bags onto the table.

"How much stuff did you buy?" Ginny asked, her eyes narrowing as Piper brought in the thirteenth bag.

"A lot." Phoebe said, closing the door and hanging her keys on the hook. "There are eleven people living in this house… and you know how Ron eats… okay, fine!" she exclaimed, noticing that Ginny still didn't look convinced. "I thought we could have a bit of a party."

"A party?" Ginny inquired. "Why?"

"To celebrate Harry and Hermione's engagement. I just thought…." Phoebe broke off, watching the spiraling column of blue-white light descending from the ceiling. Paige appeared, dressed in a kimono and a large, long billed, bird was perched on her shoulder.

"Where the hell have _you _been?" Piper asked, while Ginny and Phoebe giggled.

"Japan." Paige muttered, gesturing to her clothing. "Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, France, China, oh and lets not forget Antarctica."

"Antarctica?" Phoebe asked.

"One of my new charges is on an expedition down there. I had to save her from slipping off a glacier."

"And the bird?" Ginny asked, still chortling.

"A gift…" the bird nipped her ear rather hard. "One I'll be returning."

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And so, life went on. Harry began teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts, along with his Whitelighter duties. Hermione spent most of her free time when she wasn't chasing after charges at Magic School, doing her very best to keep the school alive, despite the Elders continued attempts to have it shut down. Ron went to work for the Ministry and became an Auror. Luna began teaching an Advanced Magic course at Magic School, along with running _The Quibbler_. Paige never seemed to stay with one thing for very long, except for her Whitelighter work. But then, that's who Paige was, a free spirit. Ginny, who had taken over the operation of the night club, P3, began seeing a lot more a Draco than the others liked, but by the time the two announced their engagement, no one had much doubt that Draco was one of the good guys, whether they liked it or not. Piper, who no longer had to worry about P3, opened the restaurant she had always wanted. And as for Phoebe, she returned to work at the _Bay Mirror_, and continued giving advice for many years.

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"So, will you do it?" Hermione asked Phoebe as they sat in the living room three weeks after Grindelwald's vanquish. Phoebe hesitated.

"Are you sure you want me to? I mean, I thought Ginny…"

"If I wanted Ginny, I would have asked her."

"Fine, I'll be your Maid of Honor." Phoebe said.

"Excellent!" said Harry, who was sitting next to Hermione on the couch.

"Do you.. Do you think Catherine would approve?" Phoebe asked. "Of me, I mean… doing this?" A sudden cold wind blew through the open window. It wound itself around them as though it were trying to hug them. Hermione smiled.

"I think she does."

"There's no way.." Harry said, his mouth hanging open. "That can't be… Kat?"

Drawn by the sound of the wind, Piper, Paige, Ron, Luna, Draco and Ginny entered the room, Ginny carrying the Book of Shadows. The wind circled the room once, then made for the open front door. It whipped through the passage. The door closed behind the wind with a magical chime. The wind blew across the front yard and ruffled a beech tree in front of the manor before fading away completely. Dumbledore, they knew, had been right. There was still evil out there, but they weren't worried about it for now. For as Harry had said, if another great evil was going to rise, it would, and they would just have to be ready for it when it did.

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A/N: Well, there you have it. At last, one year, three months, and twenty days after it began, the series is complete. I've still got the inevitable prequel to write, plus a previously unplanned, but now all but required sequel. Anyway, thanks for reading.


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